Mar22

rock piles or cathedrals?

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visiting this beautiful sacred space

stories within each brick, step, piece of wood, marble, and work of art

moving and powerful

 st. cecelia cathedral

 named for

the patron saint of musicians, composers, instrument makers, and poets in the middle ages.

—

“a rock pile ceases to be a rock pile the moment a single man contemplates it,

bearing within him the image of a cathedral.”

-antoine de saint-exupery, author of the little price

—

To find the extraordinary within the ordinary, you have to see it. And to see it, you have to look for it. And to look for it, you have to have your eyes open. You have to be open.  You have to believe that within every rock pile there is a cathedral. Or, at least, the possibility of one. Are you someone who sees rock piles, or do you see cathedrals?

Begun in 1905 and consecrated in 1959, St. Cecelia was designed by architect Thomas Rogers Kimball and is ranked among the ten largest cathedrals in the United States when it was completed. It is now ranked in the National Registry. The architectural style of the building is Spanish Renaissance Revival, rather than the European Gothic architecture popular in the early 20th century. Kimball justified his choice because of the early influence of Spain and Mexico on the region. (located in Omaha, Nebraska, USA)

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67 responses »

  5. The words, “and in the beginning” come to mind. Not every idea/thought is going to produce a beautiful work of art etc. But we should never believe that the ideas we have or others might share with us are unworthy of thinking about. Be not afraid of you own wanderings.

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  7. Looks like one of those places where you stand (or sit) in awe and absorb the wonder of it. And I really like how you described seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary. Yep, you need open eyes, open mind, and an open heart.

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  16. Although this one is not that old, but such churches or cathedrals hold so much history that you will always find something special if you only look for them. And you are an expert in finding the special in the normal, Beth.

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  25. two heinous acts of desecration of sacred images were the firebombing of Dresden’s cathedral and the destruction of the Buddhas of Bamiyan by the Taliban in the early 2000’s

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  27. Our own places of worship are not so elaborate but boy, have we visited so many places of splendor, beauty, in so many countries near and far – it‘s always overwhelming and deeply touching, even if you don‘t share their faith. Some of those cathedrals were just too much: too much gold, too ornate, too kitschy, others too sober, too cold, too uninviting. But all of them are temples to God(s) – and to quote Michelangelo ‚the beauty or statue is all there, we only have to remove the surplus… I‘m happy to see the cathedral in every stone and it might say something about me that I love old houses with a story to tell. Your words: …..

    To find the extraordinary within the ordinary, you have to see it. And to see it, you have to look for it. And to look for it, you have to have your eyes open. You have to be open. You have to believe that within every rock pile there is a cathedral. Or, at least, the possibility of one. Are you someone who sees rock piles, or do you see cathedrals?…….

    So beautifully expressed, I feel the same! (And btw, it‘s The Little Prince!)

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