| Written by Tony Gosgnach, Catholic Register Special,
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 HAMILTON, Ont. - The Cathedral of Christ the King has been standing as a beacon of faith at the western entrance to the city of Hamilton for 75 years and Jerri Hasey has been standing right along with it the entire time.
The 34th person to be baptized after the cathedral opened in 1933, she became the first woman to have all her sacraments administered there. Over the years, she along with her husband and children, brought up the gifts at the first Mass celebrated by Bishop Paul F. Reding after his installation, witnessed the introduction of the English language and guitar-based music at liturgies, as well as the disappearance of the communion rail, and served as president of the diocesan Catholic Women’s League, among other milestones.
When the time came to have someone serve as chair of the cathedral’s seven-person 75th anniversary committee, Hasey was a natural choice.
“It’s very dear to me, the cathedral,” she said. “As well as to my children. It’s been like a second home to my husband and me. We’ve been very fond of our parish and our priests. We’ve had great years here.”
Hasey’s committee, formed during the summer of 2007, is overseeing a busy year of events that began with a Mass and reception on the Feast of Christ the King last November. A number of commemorations, sometimes joined with regularly occurring proceedings or standing alone especially for the occasion, have taken place since November. Among them: souvenirs, historical displays, a new tour book, the compilation of a booklet of parish memories, visitations by former priests to celebrate Masses, a reception upcoming on the exact date of the cathedral’s dedication (Dec. 19), a Lenten mission with St. George’s, Nfld., Bishop Douglas Crosby, the creation of an anniversary quilt and a series of concerts featuring such performers as St. Michael’s Choir School, Symphony Hamilton, the Burlington Welsh Choir and the Dofasco Choir.
The climax takes place on Nov. 25, with an anniversary Mass celebrated by Hamilton Bishop Anthony Tonnos and then a banquet at Carmen’s Banquet and Convention Centre.
“We’re hoping to have many former associate pastors and rectors, as well as present and past parishioners, at the banquet,” said Hasey. “A photo video will be shown.”
It was in 1931 that Bishop John McNally announced the construction of a new cathedral for the diocese of Hamilton with the words: “We will have the finest church in Canada.” Hasey’s view three-quarters of a century later is that, “We certainly feel that we do have the finest church in Canada.”
Built of limestone by the Piggot Construction Company, using the plans of Hutton and Souter architects, the Gothic-style structure measured 72 metres in length and 22 metres in width. A fire in 1981 prompted the refurbishing of the cathedral and a solemn blessing and dedication by Reding the following year.
Hasey well remembers the cathedral’s 50th anniversary celebrations and hopes a similar kind of enthusiasm greets its latest festivities.
“We held an open house and, while we expected many people, we were certainly astonished. We had thousands come. They were lined up down King Street way past Dundurn Street. It went on for hours. It was absolutely fantastic. A lot of people still talk about it today,” she said.
Recent years, however, have seen the cathedral facing the same challenge many inner-city churches have had to deal with — the preference of younger families for suburban life. That has meant a progressive aging of the parish population, which Hasey has seen first hand.
“It’s not like it was 50 years ago when 90 per cent of us went to church all the time. It’s a whole different world out there,” she said.
Still, she added, “There are younger couples moving into the area now. That may bring us back and help us thrive … We’re seeing new and younger people coming in and being involved. That’s our future — young people.”
An online version of the cathedral’s tour book can be accessed through it’s web site at www.christthekingcathedral.org.
(Gosgnach is a freelance writer in Hamilton, Ont.)
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