Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart | |
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29°45′00″N 95°22′07″W / 29.7499°N 95.3687°WCoordinates: 29°45′00″N 95°22′07″W / 29.7499°N 95.3687°W | |
Location | 1111 St. Joseph Parkway Houston, Texas |
Country | United States |
Denomination | Roman Catholic |
Website | www.sacredhearthouston.org |
History | |
Founded | 1896 |
Dedication | Sacred Heart of Jesus |
Dedicated | April 2, 2008 |
Architecture | |
Status | Co-Cathedral |
Architect(s) | Ziegler Cooper Architects |
Style | Post-modern |
Completed | 2008 |
Construction cost | $49 million |
Specifications | |
Capacity | 1,820 |
Nave width | 72 feet (22 m) |
Number of domes | One |
Number of spires | One |
Spire height | 117 feet (36 m) |
Materials | limestone and marble-clad walls, Metal Roof |
Administration | |
Diocese | Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston |
Clergy | |
Archbishop | Cardinal Daniel DiNardo |
Rector | Rev. Lawrence W. Jozwiak |
The Co-Cathedral of the Sacred Heart is a place of worship located at 1111 St. Joseph Parkway in downtown Houston. The co-cathedral seats 1,820 people in its 32,000-square-foot (3,000 m2) sanctuary. Together with the venerable St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica in Galveston, Sacred Heart serves more than 1.2 million Roman Catholics in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston.
In 1847, Pope Pius IX established the Diocese of Galveston for the 20,000 Catholics who lived in the new state of Texas. This new diocese covered an area as large as France and was served by one bishop and ten missionary priests. Construction of the second St. Mary's parish began in 1847 in Galveston and in 1848 it was dedicated as St. Mary's Cathedral of the newly established diocese of Galveston. St. Mary's was the first catholic Cathedral in the state of Texas and for over 100 years it was the only cathedral in the Diocese of Galveston.
Due to the tremendous growth in the city of Houston, in 1959, the Holy See permitted the Most Reverend Wendelin J. Nold, fifth bishop of the Galveston Diocese, to erect a cathedral of convenience in the city. Because of its central location, he chose Sacred Heart Church, built in 1911, to serve as co-cathedral and installed an episcopal chair. This did not change the status of the City of Galveston as an Episcopal see, however it did permit full pontifical ceremonies to be held in Houston, as well as Galveston. Both cathedrals are co-equal in rank; however, since St. Mary's is the original Cathedral for the State of Texas, it has the distinction of being the Mother Cathedral for all the Catholic dioceses in Texas.
In 1979, in recognition of the Galveston Cathedral's importance to the community and state, as well as its historical role as the mother church for Catholicism in the state of Texas, Pope John Paul II elevated St. Mary's to the status of Cathedral Basilica.