About the Cathedral

In August of 1881, Jesuit Father Joseph Cataldo converted a carpenter's shop into the Church of St. Joseph, the first Catholic church in the Spokane Township. Like the smallest of seeds, the mustard seed, the Catholic faith here had humble beginnings. Only five people attended the first Mass in that wooden shed which measured just fifteen by twenty-two feet.

Soon the seed sprouted and found sustenance in this soil. Five years later, a large brick church dedicated to Our Lady of Lourdes replaced the original structure, and a school opened under the direction of the Sisters of the Holy Names. The seedling's continued growth required an even more significant move. The cornerstone for the present church was laid in 1903. In 1906, the new school was completed. In 1913, this mustard seed became what the Gospels celebrate as the "largest of plants," when Our Lady of Lourdes became the Cathedral for the newly created Diocese of Spokane.

The Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes has witnessed season after season of changes as an inner city parish. Its family of believers has experienced many phases throughout the years: the hardships of pioneer life, affluence in exclusive turn-of-the-century "Browne's Addition"; gradual demographic transition as the city sprawled outward; an influx of young and mobile military families; and a poor and aging inner city population with its complex problems.

The Cathedral community has responded to these changes. Through liturgy and ministry, it faithfully serves and represents the many faces of Christ. The Cathedral's spires dominate the skyline. Its noon chimes fill the air, announcing to residents, workers, shoppers and travelers that the reign of God is in their midst.

Day by day, The Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes stands firmly as a sign that the transcendent is present in the immanent, that an ageless tradition has a place in the here-and-now. The Cathedral offers solemn liturgical ceremony and stately ritual as well as the simple gift of a baloney sandwich to the hungry. These signs of hope reverse what could be the decline of an inner city core.

Indeed, the Cathedral family never loses sight of either the timeless realities of life or the pressing needs of the aged, the poor and the homeless. The parish family responds to physical hunger because it does not forget the source of its own vitality: the nourishing love of Christ.

The church building of the Cathedral of Our Lady of Lourdes reveals the character of its parish community.

Since the church was remodeled in 1971, there is a mixture of old and new: Italian Romanesque style arches span the interior spaces while a square baldachino amplifies prayer and song for the congregation. The original Italian marble altar depicting the sacrifice of Calvary supplies a stunning symbolic and artistic backdrop to the new altar -- the gathering table where the community of faithful share the Eucharist. The sweet tones of the original W. W. Kimball organ in the loft complement the clear resonant notes of the Druffel Memorial organ in the transept. The crowning beauty of the Cathedral is the Bavarian stained glass windows which create a panorama of Judeo-Christian history and tradition.

The Cathedral is a treasure. To the Diocese, it is the symbol of episcopal authority. Within its sheltering walls, the Cathedral community is nourished and sanctified. From within these walls, the Blessed Sacrament is carried to the sick, the aged, the imprisoned and the infirm of the city. Within these walls, an ageless Faith continues to flourish. Faith bears fruit in a century-long tradition of spiritual and corporal ministry.

From carpenter shop to Cathedral -- the parable lives!