Crystal Cathedral and Christ Cathedral

Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, California was formerly known as Crystal Cathedral; however, Christ Cathedral is Roman Catholic, but Crystal Cathedral was part of the Reformed Church in America. So, what happened, how did this transition take place? Well, I am not here to get into those details or give answers about it, but if you really need to know than I am sure you can find out easily. I normally don't watch evangelical television shows anymore, but a few weeks ago while changing channels, I noticed a priest being interviewed by Bobby Schuller on The Hour of Power and it caught my attention, so I decided to listen to the interview. It turns out that the priest was Father Christopher Smith who is Episcopal Vicar and Pastor of Christ Cathedral which is formerly Crystal Cathedral. The first question from Bobby was about the light bill at the building. Obviously, they both knew it was expensive. The building is very beautiful, but seemingly high maintenance. We do know that St. Paul once said while standing in the midst of the Areopagus in Athens that: "The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything (Acts 17:24-25, ESV Bible)." But, these foregoing verses do not mean that God cannot be worshiped in such Temples. Moreover, I love beautiful churches, and I think beauty is part of spirituality, plus I am also guilty of enjoying worship in beautiful churches. What really matters either way is not the building; it is as the Psalm which says: “Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity (Psalms 133:1, ESV Bible)!” What I found fascinating during the interview was that the more I watched the dialogue that it was very ecumenical. The two ministers knew that they were from different denominations, but they showed the love of Christ towards each other even though the transition from one building to another had been difficult for the listening audience which had previously congregated at the former Crystal Cathedral. To close, I simply want to share the link that contains a transcript of the interview in reference. The link is below, I hope you enjoy reading it.

Hour of Power : Guest Interviews : Father Christopher Smith


Reference:

ESV Bible

http://www.hourofpower.org/interviews/detail.php?contentid=8232

Pastor Rick Warren, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange County, Mental Illness, and Ecumenism

I suppose the title of this post says it all, but it does leave one with questions, so I will try to explain a bit. Rick Warren’s son, Matthew Warren, shot himself almost a year ago on April 5, 2013. Mathew struggled with mental illness for many years, and sadly his suicide was a tragedy. But, that less than a year later, Mathew's father, Rick Warren has begun a Mental Illness Ministry at Saddleback Church. Saddleback Church, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness-Orange County, last week on March 28th, 2014 hosted an event. More than 3,000 people came together for this event which was called: The Gathering on Mental Health and the Church. Now, why am I talking about it on this blog? Well, did I mention that Saddleback Church is an Evangelical church? Well, it is! Did I mention the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange? Yes, I did! Well, if you put Roman Catholics and Evangelicals together in one room than you are having ecumenism. And, on this blog ecumenism among any Christian denominations seems like good thing, and focusing on mental illness is also a good thing because maybe it can prevent another person from ending their life just like Mathew Warren. If you want to learn more about the event I spoke about, please read the article by Sophia Lee on World Magazine at the link below. 

WORLD | Rick Warren launches mental health ministry | Sophia Lee | April 1, 2014



Reference:

http://www.worldmag.com/2014/04/rick_warren_launches_mental_health_ministry