Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist (Boise, Idaho)
Encyclopedia
The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist, also known simply as St. John’s Cathedral, is a Catholic cathedral
in Boise, Idaho
, United States
. It is the seat of the Diocese of Boise
, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
.
purchased property bounded by Fort, Hays, Eighth and Ninth Streets. He laid the cornerstone
for the present cathedral in 1906. So as not to be a financial drain on the parish, the church building was built in stages. After the lower level was completed the parish worshiped there. The walls and roof were competed in 1912, and the cathedral as it is known today, was completed during the episcopate of Bishop Daniel Mary Gorman
. He dedicated the church on Easter Sunday 1921.
St. John’s Cathedral was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 as a part of the Tourtellotte and Hummel Architecture Thematic Resource. The rest of the buildings on the block were added to the National Register in 1982 and are listed as St. John's Cathedral Block.
that was quarried just outside of the city at Tablerock. The building is cruciform in shape and measures 170 feet (52 m) from front to back, 95 feet (30 m) at the transepts and 65 feet (20 m) in the nave
.
The building was designed to have two towers topped with spire
s flanking the main façade
. They, however, have not been completed. A rose window
graces the front of the church. The center gable
above the main entrance features a statue of St. John the Evangelist on its peak. Corbel
ing, a continuous band of small projecting arches, encircles the building at the roofline.
The stained glass
windows in the nave depict scenes from the life of Christ. The large widow in the north transept depicts the Adoration of the Magi. It is flanked by widows portraying St. Alphonsus Ligouri and St. Theresa of Avila. The south transept window depicts the Ascension
and is flanked by windows portraying St. Patrick and St. Rita. The windows in the sanctuary depict St. Joseph on the north and the Blessed Virgin Mary on the south. In the apse
are windows portraying the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary
. They are flanked by windows portraying the Four Evangelists
. The windows were installed in 1920, except the window portraying the Holy Spirit
in the center of the apse, which was installed in 1979. St. Cecilia is depicted in the window above the pipe organ
.
The interior of the church had a major cleaning in 1952 and an exterior restoration was carried out in the 1960s. In the late 1970s a major renovation of the interior was completed. The altar was moved under the transept and the seating was brought closer for better participation by the laity. The baptismal font was redesigned as a pool and the former font was repurposed as an ambry to hold the holy oils. A reservation altar for the tabernacle
was created in the south transept. The canopy was from the former high altar. St John’s received an Orchid Award in 1981 from the Idaho Historic Preservation Council for outstanding work in restoration.
Cathedral
A cathedral is a Christian church that contains the seat of a bishop...
in Boise, Idaho
Boise, Idaho
Boise is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho, as well as the county seat of Ada County. Located on the Boise River, it anchors the Boise City-Nampa metropolitan area and is the largest city between Salt Lake City, Utah and Portland, Oregon.As of the 2010 Census Bureau,...
, United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. It is the seat of the Diocese of Boise
Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise
The Diocese of Boise is an ecclesiastical territory of the Catholic Church in the northwestern U.S., encompassing the entire state of Idaho. It is led by a bishop who serves as pastor of the cathedral, the Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist in Boise...
, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
History
The first Catholic church in Boise was dedicated on Christmas Eve 1870 and was destroyed in a fire 18 days later. Another frame structure was built that would serve as the cathedral of the Vicariate Apostolic of Idaho, established March 5, 1883, and the Diocese of Boise after it was established on August 25, 1893. It was located on the northwest corner of Ninth and Bannock Streets. As the city started to grow a larger cathedral was needed and Bishop Alphonse Joseph GlorieuxAlphonse Joseph Glorieux
Bishop Alphonse Joseph Glorieux was a Belgian missionary Roman Catholic bishop, who served as the first bishop of Boise, Idaho, United States.-Beginning in Belgium:...
purchased property bounded by Fort, Hays, Eighth and Ninth Streets. He laid the cornerstone
Cornerstone
The cornerstone concept is derived from the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation, important since all other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure.Over time a cornerstone became a ceremonial masonry stone, or...
for the present cathedral in 1906. So as not to be a financial drain on the parish, the church building was built in stages. After the lower level was completed the parish worshiped there. The walls and roof were competed in 1912, and the cathedral as it is known today, was completed during the episcopate of Bishop Daniel Mary Gorman
Daniel Mary Gorman
Daniel Mary Gorman was an American clergyman of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Boise from 1918 until his death in 1927.-Biography:...
. He dedicated the church on Easter Sunday 1921.
St. John’s Cathedral was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 as a part of the Tourtellotte and Hummel Architecture Thematic Resource. The rest of the buildings on the block were added to the National Register in 1982 and are listed as St. John's Cathedral Block.
Architecture
St. John’s Cathedral was designed by one of the first architectural firms to work in Boise, Tourtellotte and Hummel. It is built in the Romanesque Revival style and the Cathedral of Mainz in Germany was the model for its design. The stone for the exterior is Boise SandstoneSandstone
Sandstone is a sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized minerals or rock grains.Most sandstone is composed of quartz and/or feldspar because these are the most common minerals in the Earth's crust. Like sand, sandstone may be any colour, but the most common colours are tan, brown, yellow,...
that was quarried just outside of the city at Tablerock. The building is cruciform in shape and measures 170 feet (52 m) from front to back, 95 feet (30 m) at the transepts and 65 feet (20 m) in the nave
Nave
In Romanesque and Gothic Christian abbey, cathedral basilica and church architecture, the nave is the central approach to the high altar, the main body of the church. "Nave" was probably suggested by the keel shape of its vaulting...
.
The building was designed to have two towers topped with spire
Spire
A spire is a tapering conical or pyramidal structure on the top of a building, particularly a church tower. Etymologically, the word is derived from the Old English word spir, meaning a sprout, shoot, or stalk of grass....
s flanking the main façade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
. They, however, have not been completed. A rose window
Rose window
A Rose window is often used as a generic term applied to a circular window, but is especially used for those found in churches of the Gothic architectural style and being divided into segments by stone mullions and tracery...
graces the front of the church. The center gable
Gable
A gable is the generally triangular portion of a wall between the edges of a sloping roof. The shape of the gable and how it is detailed depends on the structural system being used and aesthetic concerns. Thus the type of roof enclosing the volume dictates the shape of the gable...
above the main entrance features a statue of St. John the Evangelist on its peak. Corbel
Corbel
In architecture a corbel is a piece of stone jutting out of a wall to carry any superincumbent weight. A piece of timber projecting in the same way was called a "tassel" or a "bragger". The technique of corbelling, where rows of corbels deeply keyed inside a wall support a projecting wall or...
ing, a continuous band of small projecting arches, encircles the building at the roofline.
The stained glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows in the nave depict scenes from the life of Christ. The large widow in the north transept depicts the Adoration of the Magi. It is flanked by widows portraying St. Alphonsus Ligouri and St. Theresa of Avila. The south transept window depicts the Ascension
Ascension
The Ascension of Jesus is the Christian teaching found in the New Testament when the resurrected Jesus was taken up to heaven in his resurrected body, in the presence of eleven of his apostles, occurring 40 days after the resurrection...
and is flanked by windows portraying St. Patrick and St. Rita. The windows in the sanctuary depict St. Joseph on the north and the Blessed Virgin Mary on the south. In the apse
Apse
In architecture, the apse is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome...
are windows portraying the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Immaculate Heart of Mary
Immaculate Heart of Mary
The Immaculate Heart of Mary originally The Sacred Heart of Mary is a devotional name used to refer to the interior life of Mary, her joys and sorrows, her virtues and hidden perfections, and, above all, her virginal love for God, her maternal love for her Son, Jesus, and her compassionate love for...
. They are flanked by windows portraying the Four Evangelists
Four Evangelists
In Christian tradition the Four Evangelists are Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four Gospel accounts in the New Testament that bear the following titles:*Gospel according to Matthew*Gospel according to Mark...
. The windows were installed in 1920, except the window portraying the Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit
Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of the Hebrew Bible, but understood differently in the main Abrahamic religions.While the general concept of a "Spirit" that permeates the cosmos has been used in various religions Holy Spirit is a term introduced in English translations of...
in the center of the apse, which was installed in 1979. St. Cecilia is depicted in the window above the pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
.
The interior of the church had a major cleaning in 1952 and an exterior restoration was carried out in the 1960s. In the late 1970s a major renovation of the interior was completed. The altar was moved under the transept and the seating was brought closer for better participation by the laity. The baptismal font was redesigned as a pool and the former font was repurposed as an ambry to hold the holy oils. A reservation altar for the tabernacle
Tabernacle
The Tabernacle , according to the Hebrew Torah/Old Testament, was the portable dwelling place for the divine presence from the time of the Exodus from Egypt through the conquering of the land of Canaan. Built to specifications revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai, it accompanied the Israelites...
was created in the south transept. The canopy was from the former high altar. St John’s received an Orchid Award in 1981 from the Idaho Historic Preservation Council for outstanding work in restoration.