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With the permission of the Holy See in Rome, Holy Spirit Church in Parma Ohio has been elevated to the status of the new Cathedral for our Eparchy of Parma and is to be renamed “The Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist.” Many circumstances that developed over a period of years has necessitated this move from our original Cathedral and chancery complex on the corner of Snow and Broadview Roads in Parma to its new location on W. 54th St. in Parma. Changes such as these in the Church are understandable, and to varying degrees, accompanied by sadness and even a process of grieving. However, the move of our new Cathedral and Eparchial center represents an effort in the daring, evangelical, creative and visionary charism that founded the Eparchy of Parma and has always been the very soul of our Eparchy.
The Eparchy of Parma was founded as a creative, visionary, evangelical response to new and exciting ministerial challenges that faced the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church in America from the 1960’s to the present. Our Eparchy was a missionary Eparchy wherein courageous and zealous clergy were sent to areas of the United States that had no Byzantine Catholic presence. Due to the Grace of God and the efforts of our visionary first Bishop of the Eparchy of Parma, Bishop Emil J. Mihalik, missions, shrines and monasteries and eventually parishes began to spring up across the Midwest and far west regions of the United States extending all the way to Hawaii. The clergy and faithful who began these missions did so from scratch, with nothing. These efforts across the western part of the United States became so fruitful that in the 1980’s a new Eparchy was birthed out of the Eparchy of Parma. It was at first located in Van Nuys, California but eventually relocated to Phoenix, Arizona and is now the Ruthenian Eparchy of Phoenix.
The Eparchy of Parma was established in 1969, in the first flush after the Second Vatican Council which called the Eastern Catholic Churches to a rediscovery and renewal of their authentic spiritual and liturgical Eastern Christian traditions. Because of the vision and zeal of the first clergy of the Eparchy of Parma the Eparchy became a leader in this rediscovery and renewal of authentic Byzantine Catholicism. Eventually an award wining newspaper, “Horizons” was published by the Eparchy of Parma. The very name of this newspaper was chosen because it symbolized the forward looking, visionary charism of this new Eparchy which always looked forward to and embraced whatever would be on the new ministerial horizons of the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church in America.
Holy Spirit parish in Parma, Ohio was built right around the time of the establishment of the Eparchy of Parma. Now, the vision, efforts, and sacrifices of the priest and faithful who founded Holy Spirit parish are being magnified as their church complex now becomes the representative, flagship church of the Eparchy of Parma—the new Cathedral of St. John the Baptist.
As the flagship church of our Eparchy, it is necessary for our new Cathedral to be a worthy symbol of that original visionary charism of our Eparchy and of the continual unfolding of the call of the Second Vatican Council to restore and renew the venerable and timeless traditions of our Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church. In this regard the new Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist will be undergoing some renovations not only to be a worthy, representative symbol of the traditions of our particular church but to accommodate living quarters for a priest, chancery offices and all other needs, activities and events that are part of the life of a Cathedral and Eparchial center.
Featured here is a concept rendering of some proposed design developments for the exterior of our new Cathedral. Just as the move itself of our new Cathedral is an act that builds upon the consistent charism of vision and evangelization of our Eparchy, the proposed design for the exterior of our new Cathedral does not do away with the original design of Holy Spirit church but rather builds upon it.
The design proposed here is a concept and therefore part of a creative process. This means that the final design development of our new Cathedral may not be what is exactly featured in this rendering, but it will be very close.
The basic design approach adopted for the exterior of our new Cathedral features the indigenous “Hutzul” style architecture of the Central and Eastern European origins of the Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church. In this way the design of our new Cathedral will be unique among Eastern Catholic Cathedrals in America, and it will stand as a testimony paying homage to the roots of our particular Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church. The use of wood and shingles would be the predominant material for the domes and other architectural features. The current halls at the new Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist will be adequate to serve the life of an Eparchial center.
As significant as the new Cathedral relocation and redesign is, this project is only part of a whole new life and era that is dawning in the Eparchy of Parma. New ministries, budgets and programs are emerging in the Eparchy of Parma. A new concerted investment of personnel, time, effort and money is happening in the western most regions and other mission and undeveloped areas of our Eparchy. While many exciting new developments will be happening in the Eparchy of Parma as these next years unfold, the one thing that is remaining consistent is the original daring forward looking charism of mission, vision, creativity and evangelization that founded this Ruthenian Eparchy of Parma, and which remains the very soul of this Eparchy. This is an eparchy that has always seen challenges as opportunity for greatness, creativity and establishing the Kingdom of Heaven on earth through the riches of our Ruthenian Byzantine Catholic Church.
