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CNN Live Today

Cathedral Dedication Ceremony Gets Underway

Aired September 02, 2002 - 13:12   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN ANCHOR: Our Lady of the Angeles is being dedicated at this hour in the city of angels. It is the first new Catholic cathedral in the U.S. in a quarter century.
CNN's Thelma Gutierrez is at the scene in downtown Los Angeles -- a lot of people there, Thelma?

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Kyra, I can tell you that there are thousands of people who are gathered here right behind me in the plaza of the cathedral.

Now, they are all waiting to go inside the cathedral for the first time for this three-hour ceremony, but before they do, several rituals will take place. Now, you can see that crowd right behind me now. Cardinal Mahoney will be handed over the plans by the chief architect, Rafael Moneo, who is from Spain. He will approach the cardinal, he will offer him the plans, and on those plans will be all the names of the people who have been in charge of this cathedral, and the names of the workers are recorded on those plans. After that, artist Robert Graham, who created the great bronze doors of the cathedral, will present Cardinal Mahoney with a mallet on which to knock on the cathedral doors.

The cardinal will then call upon the pastor of the Cathedral, Monsignor Kevin Kostelnik, who will open those doors. After he does that, he will knock on the doors. The doors will open, and cardinal will lead 3,000 people into the cathedral.

Now, we had mentioned that several people have called the cathedral one of the jewels of Grand Avenue here in downtown Los Angeles, and many are celebrating the modern features of this cathedral. On the roof of the conference center are photovoltaic solar panels which cover 7,000 square feet. Now, the system is going to produce 66 kilowatts of energy, and that's enough to power 66 homes. The cells, which convert sunlight into energy will generate 10 to 15 percent of the electricity used by the cathedral, truly making it one structure of the 21st century.

Now, one of the center pieces of the cathedral is the alter. It is made of red marble, it is 10 feet long, and there are four angels, which are made of bronze. They are covered in layers of silver and heavy pure gold bullion. Again, the center of the cathedral. The sculptor is M.L. Snowden. She was selected from 8,000 international artists to build this altar.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) M.L. SNOWDEN, SCULPTOR: The angels reach out to everyone. They are here to guide and protect, and to form the deepest hopes and desires, the kernel of faith. They take all of this beautiful, ambient light that comes into the cathedral and they seem to glow from within with it.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

GUTIERREZ: Now, the total cost of the cathedral, Kyra, $189 million. All of that money raised from donations, we're told, 5,800 donors who gave money, anywhere from 25 million to $5, just to build this cathedral -- Kyra.

PHILLIPS: Wow, touched by an angel. All right. Our Thelma Gutierrez there in Los Angeles. Thanks, Thelma.

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