Cathedral parish celebrating 75 years

When the Bismarck Diocese’s Cathedral was officially opened with a simple blessing on Aug. 30, 1945, there were many items lacking.

Among those items were a pipe organ, the chimes, iron and bronze grilles for the choir and organ loft, baptistry, art glass windows, statuary and stations, sanctuary and sacristy furniture and furnishings and stalls for the choir and gallery.

That’s a long list, but the one thing it didn’t mention was a parish. The Cathedral was not established as a parish until Jan. 1, 1947. Bishop Vincent Ryan’s dream of building a grand Cathedral to tower over Bismarck and serve as a beacon for the Catholic people of the diocese, came to fruition, but it was nearly a year and a half after the structure was complete before it became a true home for its parishioners.

In December 1946, it was announced that there would be a separation of Bismarck’s Catholic community into parishes—the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit and St. Mary’s—effective Jan. 1. A Bismarck Tribune article dated December 31, 1946, stated that a letter from Bishop Ryan read at the Sunday Mass established a dividing line for the two parishes. It had been announced that when the Cathedral was opened that the people would undoubtedly begin to divide themselves and the official division would take advantage of that. The division began at 5th street with the center line of the street becoming the dividing line.

The division left St. Mary’s the much larger parish; however, the situation was expected to correct itself as the city grew. The Cathedral parish certainly did grow from the initial 250 families to nearly 1,500 families today.

75th anniversary celebration

The 75-year-old parish will soon kick off a celebration to commemorate this historic moment for the diocese.

“The focus of the celebrations will be community—building it and sustaining it,” said Fr. Josh Ehli, rector of the Cathedral since December 2019.

Planned events include: 40 Hours Devotion; blessing of new outdoor nativity scene during Advent 2021; school art show in the spring of 2022; music recital also in the spring of 2022; Spirit Festival on June 4 (celebrated on the vigil of Pentecost, Cathedral’s annual parish celebration; as well as parish pilgrimages to Rome with dates to be determined.

The cornerstone of these events, Fr. Ehil said, revolves around revisiting some of the rich history of the parish life. He said that seminarians assigned to the parish during the summer months were tasked with researching the history of the parish. It was through this research that they noticed an event that stood out in the history annals. It was a celebration of the 40 Hours Devotion before the Blessed Sacrament in which priests who had previously served at the parish were invited back to be the guest homilist and speaker.

“Not only is this an opportunity to foster the great graces of Eucharistic adoration,” Fr. Ehli noted, “it’s somewhat sentimental for the parish to revisit these events to bring people together before the Blessed Sacrament and to spend time as a community—as a parish community.”

The 40 Hours Devotion is a special 40-hour period of continuous prayer made before the Blessed Sacrament in solemn exposition. The event includes Eucharistic adoration in the main body of the church, Masses and confessions. Father Russ Kovash will lead a parish mission with a series of homilies for the three-day event on Nov. 19-21. Looking ahead, the planned homilist for 2022 is Bishop Austin Vetter.

The timing of the event is also intentional to celebrate the final week of ordinary time—marked by the Solemnity of Christ the King—just before the Church and her people launch into the somewhat hectic Advent season.

“It’s 40 hours of around-the-clock adoration to calm us during the busy time of our lives as school gets into full swing and the holidays are just around the corner,” Fr. Ehli added.

It’s that community atmosphere that Fr. Ehli and the staff at the Cathedral parish are intentionally creating just before one of the busiest times of the year with the hope that it will sustain itself long beyond Advent.

The two other major events that will foster the parish community are the annual Spirit Festival and the Rome pilgrimages. The festival brings people together to enjoy food, music and fellowship that many look forward to on an annual basis.

The Rome pilgrimages are what Fr. Ehli called the “thread” that can serve to bind it all together. He’s willing to go to Rome as many times as there are people wanting to go. Having spent his seminary formation years there as well as a stint at a post with the Holy See, he’s eager to share his appreciation for Rome with others. It’s on these pilgrimages, exploring the food, art and faith of Rome, that he believes parishioners can really connect with each other and form bonds.

“More recently, we’ve put a lot of energy into young adults, women’s Bible studies, men’s groups and finding those opportunities for people to come together to create and foster community,” he said.

He hopes to see more family nights on the schedule, too, and more events to focus on hospitality, an area he noted that the Catholic Church needs to do better. He’s fully aware that a lot of people, especially younger, are what they call “nones” or “unchurched” having a weak or no religious affiliation. Father Ehli says it’s part of his job to give them resources and help them make connections.

The Cathedral church building is the bishop’s and really belongs to everyone in the entire diocese, but it’s Fr. Ehli’s task, with the help and dedication of the associate priests and parish staff, to foster the parish life.

The public is invited to check the Cathedral website at cathedralparish.com or call the parish office at 223-1033 for more 75th anniversary celebration details and to sign up for adoration times during the 40 Hours Devotion.