The Cathedral of Saints Peter and Paul, seat
of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence, is getting a $1.2 million
makeover ahead of its 125th anniversary next year.When the 1,500-seat cathedral reopens tomorrow (Sunday), it will have new lighting that will illuminate previously dark corners of its gilded wood vaulted ceiling, repairs to its Munich stained glass windows and a newly restored organ that is one of the largest of its kind in North America.
The Gothic-style cathedral with 156-foot twin towers and an exterior of Connecticut brownstone was designed by New York architect Patrick C. Keely, who also designed the Cathedral of the Holy Cross in Boston and many other cathedrals and churches around the country, including two others in Rhode Island: St. Joseph's Church in Providence and St. Mary's Church in Newport.
The Rev. Monsignor Anthony Mancini, rector of the cathedral, says the building holds a special place of importance for the state's Catholics.
"They come to see the cathedral because of the historicity of it and the beauty of it," he said during a recent tour.
The main floor of the cathedral has been closed since July 1 as crews install new flooring, reconfigure the oak pews and create new wheelchair-accessible seating, repair the cathedral's four bells and clock, and install cameras that will allow services to be streamed online.
Mancini likes to say that the cathedral was built with the pennies of the poor. Its construction was a project of Thomas Hendricken, who was born in Kilkenny, Ireland, and installed as the first bishop of Providence in 1872 after the Vatican split the region from the Diocese of Hartford, Conn. Hendricken soon took on the task of raising money to build a new cathedral, according to Mancini, and he refused to take out any loans.
Instead, he traveled the diocese to raise money for the project, a process that took years.
The work was often done for free by parishioners, many of whom were Irish tradesmen who would work at the cathedral during off-hours from work, Mancini said.
The cathedral's cornerstone, made of Kilkenny marble, was laid on Thanksgiving Day in 1878, and the cathedral was finally consecrated on June 30, 1889.
Hendricken died in 1886, before it was complete, but his funeral was held there and was the first Mass celebrated in the cathedral, Mancini said.
The cathedral underwent a major renovation starting in 1968, during which gas-powered lights were replaced with new electric lights, Mancini said.
But the lights never fully illuminated some of the cathedral's most stunning features, including many paintings that can barely be seen.
Now, new LED lighting will allow visitors to see works such as the Transfiguration of Jesus, at the center of the ceiling, by the German painter William Lamprecht and other works. The LED lights will also cut down on energy usage and maintenance.
Other changes include repairs to the cathedral's 36-foot-high, 6,700-pipe organ, one of the largest mechanical-action organs in North America, and built by famed organ manufacturer Casavant Freres of St. Hyacinthe, Quebec.
The organ, installed in 1972, will be cleaned and tuned.
Mancini said many of the pipes had been leaning, and those will be repaired.
The Sept. 1 opening kicks off the cathedral's anniversary festivities, which include special concerts, youth events and other events culminating June 29, with a major celebration on the feast of Saints Peter and Paul.