And Mary!!!!
What better day to share a beautiful cathedral then on a Sunday! Back in December when I visited a good friend in Philadelphia. I took some time to go see the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Peter and Paul. After 23 years living in that area and never once did I go see it. The Benjamin Franklin Parkway in downtown Philly is known for its many squares with fountains, and great museums, from the Philadelphia Art Museum, Franklin Institue, Natural History Museum, The Barnes Collection and the Rodin Museum. However, the beautiful cathedral is often overlooked. The brownstone covered exterior stuck me as odd for a cathedral, but it does seem to fit well into the architecture of Philadelphia.
Above the brownstone is an oxidized copper dome that hints at things to come inside and creates one of the most interesting looking cathedrals I've seen with most Catholic cathedrals, as the painted domes are often the highlight of them. The frescoes high above I believe were done by artist Constantino Brumidi who is most famous for his work in the Capitol Dome in DC. With the passage of the Charter of Privileges in 1701, William Penn officially secured religious freedom for all Pennsylvanians. By the time America had declared its independence, nearly one quarter of all Philadelphians were Catholic, and it was announced that a cathedral would be built, Cathedral Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul, construction would not be completed on the building until nearly two decades later in 1864. As it turns out the wait would be worth it. Designed ny Napoleon LeBrun, the cathedral is built in the Roman-Corinthian style and modeled after the Lombard Church of St. Charles in Rome. The church was immediately recognized as a significant work of architecture. Perhaps the biggest day for the cathedral was in 1979 at a mass given by Pope John Paul II. It' said 1 million people came and stood in front of the cathedral, the mass, the largest gathering in the history of Philadelphia at least till the Black Lives Matters March took place and the mass of Pope Francis who came in 2015.
However, the overall look of the cathedral is quite beautiful. As the only Roman-Corinthian style church in America, it's well worth a look at the unique building style. And given that it's located so close to some of Philadelphia's art spots, there's no reason not to pop in. And if I can enter a house of worship and it still stands, you know it's well built.
Oh what the hell....
