One hundred and three years after construction began, St John’s Cathedral was officially consecrated by the Archbishop of Brisbane, Dr Phillip Aspinall last week.Approximately 1,400 people, including Opposition Leader Malcolm Turnbull and ecumenical guests celebrated the consecration of the Gothic Cathedral on Oct 29.
“This was one of the last Gothic construction projects in the world to be completed and to see the vision become a reality in my time here is a real honour,” Dr Aspinall said.
Designed by English architect John L Pearson in 1889, St John’s Cathedral is believed to be the last Gothic Cathedral to be completed. Construction began in 1906 and the first stage was completed in 1910.
Stage two began in 1968 and was completed in 1968. The third stage of the construction costing £20 million began in 1989 and was completed on Nov 11, 2008 when the last 13 metre-tall bell tower weighing 22 tonnes was lifted into place.
Over 100,000 stones were used in the construction process, which followed the medieval pattern of building around a design of load-bearing masonry.
The archbishop said the completed Cathedral is a testament to the efforts of all those people and will stand as a monument to optimism, determination and faith for many generations to come.
“I have said before that this magnificent building is more than blocks of stone and tiles. It reflects the hopes and dreams of people and it belongs to the people.
Pearson was asked what he thought was the “mark of a good church. He responded ‘the question to ask oneself on entering a church is not ‘is this admirable?’, ‘is this beautiful?’, but ‘Does it send you to your knees?’ I say that St John’s fits the description of a good Church and Pearson would be proud,” Dr Aspinall said.
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