The New Murrey and Blue blog

I had never heard of a pro cathedral before, and so had to look it up. According to Wikipedia, it’s the following:

“….A pro-cathedral or procathedral is a parish church that temporarily serves as the cathedral or co-cathedral of a diocese, or a church that has the same function in a Catholic missionary jurisdiction (such as an apostolic prefecture or apostolic administration) that is not yet entitled to a proper cathedral. A pro-cathedral is distinct from a proto-cathedral, the term in the Catholic Church for a former cathedral, which typically results from moving an episcopal see to another (usually new) cathedral, in the same or another city. In a broader context, the term “proto-cathedral” may refer to a church used by a bishop before the designation of a settled cathedral (or pro-cathedral)….”

I do hope you don’t think I’m being facetious when I say that I’m really none the wiser. It’s not because I scorn such things or am of a different church, but simply because I’m not knowledgeable.

But clearly, when I read this article What does it mean for St Mary’s to become a cathedral? – The Irish Catholic I knew that it was an important thing for the church.

It’s certainly nothing to do with Dublin lacking a cathedral, for it definitely does. It has the 1000-year old Christchurch, a magnificent building that has had its share of the history of our islands.

Dublin also has the 800-year-old St Patrick’s Cathedral, which Matt Letourneau, the writer of the above article likens to Hogwarts. Believe me, that is not an insult. The locations for the Harry Potter movies were picked for their spectacular appearance. I can say that with pride, being a citizen of Gloucester, where the cathedral cloister was used quite a lot. It’s a badge we’re happy to wear because it acknowledges the beauty of our great church. So St Patrick’s in Dublin is, as you see below. very beautiful too!

Anyway, if you read the above article about St Mary’s by Matt Letourneau you’ll learn a great deal more about the pro cathedral. He writes as follows: “….Roughly 1000 years ago, a Benedictine monastery named St Mary’s stood proud by the river. In the 12th Century, this monastery grew to a Cistercian abbey, encompassing a large part of Dublin, stretching ‘right along the north side of the Liffey’….”  So although St Mary’s has a classical appearance now, its origins go back much, much further.

I wish it still had its medieval appearance. Porticoes and columns leave me cold, as do all Wren’s churches in London. If only there hadn’t been that fire in 1666…. St Paul’s Cathedral leaves me cold, but Westminster Abbey is breathtaking!

But Dublin still has two glorious medieval cathedrals, and my fussy taste is hardly going to take away from St Mary’s advancement.