Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange - Cathedral

Cathedral

In 2001, Bishop Tod Brown first announced plans to build a new cathedral to succeed the Cathedral of the Holy Family. However, soon after, the Catholic Church sexual abuse scandal broke out in the diocese, and Brown deemed it "inappropriate" to raise funds for a new cathedral in light of the scandal. In 2005, the diocese purchased land in south Santa Ana and established Christ Our Savior Cathedral Parish, with the intention of someday building a cathedral on the property. The cost of building a cathedral on the Santa Ana site was estimated to be as high as $200 million, which prompted comparisons to the cost of building the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles.

In October 2010, Crystal Cathedral Ministries, the Protestant congregation that owned and worshiped in the eponymous Crystal Cathedral building in Garden Grove, filed for bankruptcy protection. Several months later, the diocese announced that it was "potentially interested" in buying the building and converting it into a diocesan cathedral as a potential cost and time saving alternative over building a new cathedral on the Santa Ana site.

On November 17, 2011, a U.S. bankruptcy court judge in Santa Ana approved the sale of the Crystal Cathedral building and adjacent campus to the diocese for $57.5 million; the sale was finalized on February 3, 2012. On June 9, 2012, it was announced that the building is to be known as "Christ Cathedral" when it becomes the diocese's new cathedral. The building's new name was designated by the Holy See, while suggestions were also taken from the diocese and its members. Bishop Brown has stated that the diocese intends to hire an architect to renovate the facility "so it will be suitable for a Catholic place of worship", but has "no intention to change the exterior of the building."