Fr. Paul Arinze is blessed to remember being ordained in St. Raphael Cathedral in 1999, and he can see that gift’s impact. 

“Being ordained a priest inside the cathedral . . . integrates personal vocation with the spiritual, historical, and communal dimensions of the Catholic Church in the diocese,” Father Arinze said. “It serves as both a blessing and a charge — to carry forward the legacy of faith and to serve the community with humility and dedication . . . St. Raphael Cathedral was a reminder that my priestly ministry is not a solitary endeavor but part of a larger, unbroken tradition that spans centuries.”

Loss of St. Raphael’s 
Fr. Michael Radowicz has fond memories of the former cathedral. “I was stationed there [as a seminarian] for two summers, and St. Raphael was my home parish, so I spent many breaks and recesses at the cathedral. I enjoyed my time with Msgr. Dan Ganshert and Msgr. Paul Swain. I owe much of my priesthood to Monsignor Ganshert – his love for the people of the cathedral was incredibly moving for me.” 

He also remembers feeling the loss when St. Raphael Cathedral burned down in 2005. Father Radowicz, then a transitional deacon, had sent out his priestly ordination invitations just days before the fire. “I was able to see a live feed of Channel 3000 broadcasting from the fire scene before I went to Morning Prayer that morning. I remember Msgr. [James] Bartylla saying to me, ‘Please don’t send out your ordination invitations!’ I told him, ‘I’m sorry, Monsignor, it’s too late.’” 

Father Radowicz keenly remembers two images. First, the distraught face of Monsignor Swain who “looked like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders.” Second, the image of the Blessed Sacrament being safely removed from the cathedral by a firefighter. “I really wasn’t concerned about my ordination – I was more concerned for Monsignor Swain, the cathedral parishioners, and the diocese as a whole . . . it was such a significant loss that would be felt by so many.”

St. Raphael had been the cathedral since 1946, when the diocese was founded, and had been a local church in Madison for almost a century before that. After the fire, the diocese spent 20 years without a cathedral, and while the people and priests of the diocese rallied to provide alternative locations for important liturgies like the Chrism Mass and ordinations, many still felt the painful lack of a cathedral.

A new home for the diocese 
For those who can remember the loss, the new cathedral is all the more meaningful. Father Radowicz is now the pastor at St. Bernard of Clairvaux Cathedral Parish in Madison and has been deeply involved in the work of the new cathedral. 
“The Lord works in such beautiful ways,” Father Radowicz said. “I never imagined that I would have anything to do with the future cathedral of the Diocese of Madison. And yet, here I am! It has been an incredible experience to walk with [Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison] and so many others as this vision came together. I’ve said so many times how beautiful it is to watch the Holy Spirit working . . . We’re entering into the final construction and finishing phases of the project, and it’s at this juncture where everything begins to come together. It’s a marvel.” 

Father Radowicz can see the blessing that the new cathedral will be, both to the priests and seminarians and to all the faithful of the diocese. 

“I had the privilege of welcoming our seminarians to the cathedral for a full tour,” he said. “We spent approximately two hours going through everything from top to bottom. Many of the seminarians commented on how grateful they are to have a beautiful cathedral in which they will celebrate their ordinations to the diaconate and priesthood. It was a time of great encouragement for them to see a glimpse of what will become a sacred home for all people.

“I’m excited to see who we will have the joy of ministering to as the cathedral opens and becomes a permanent landmark in the life of our diocesan Church . . . In this moment, Almighty God . . . is doing something very beautiful as the Spirit is calling a record number of people across the diocese to become members of His Body in the Catholic Church.”

Looking ahead 
The diocese’s current seminarians are certainly vividly aware of the gift that this new cathedral is for their vocations.

Transitional Deacon Luis Reyes said, “I feel grateful for the endless dedication and unconditional support that everyone in our diocese is giving to the completion of the new cathedral. It is more than just another church building; it is the heart of our diocese where we gather as a whole family to worship and be transformed in union with our Bishop, our priests and deacons, and the entire community of the faithful . . . I feel honored to be part of the first ordination class in the new cathedral.”

Michael Hess, a seminarian who will soon be ordained deacon, God willing, in the new cathedral, said, “It feels as though God has prepared this very moment in the diocese’s history for my ordination . . . While I am a class of one, and therefore will not be sharing the joy of ordination with any other ordinandi, I will have the occasion to celebrate more broadly with the clergy, the lay faithful, and my family . . . my own earthly father has had his hand in the construction of what will be the crown jewel of the Diocese of Madison. The Lord works through His Incarnation, and in this particular case, He has ordained my father to be one of the main builders working on this project. It is as if the Lord were saying, ‘My Father’s house has many rooms; if that were not so, would I have told you that I am going there to prepare a place for you?’ (Jn 14:2)”

Hess sees the new cathedral as a gift that extends far beyond his own ordination.

“Now . . . we will have a place that is our home — where the Bishop’s Chair resides, and where the local Church community comes together to unite in prayer, anchored around the bishop, successor to the Apostles,” he said. “Our cathedral will be stunningly beautiful, structurally sound, and truly a place we can call home. It is this church whose interior beauty will stir our hearts toward greater spiritual devotion, whose exterior foundation symbolizes the faith in which we stake our claim as Christians, and whose celebration of the sacraments will fuel the spiritual life of the priests who will then go out and nourish the People of God here in the Diocese of Madison.”

Learn more about the Diocese of Madison’s new cathedral at madisoncathedral.org