2121 Harrison Street, Oakland, California, USA
Cathedral of Christ the Light
Oakland's striking contemporary cathedral, completed in 2008, whose wood-and-glass shell is shaped like a vessel and floods the interior with natural light filtered through translucent panels of Douglas fir.
After the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake condemned Oakland's old cathedral, the diocese spent nearly two decades planning and building this replacement. Designed by Craig Hartman of Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, it opened in 2008 and looks like nothing else in American Catholic architecture. The structure is a tapered shell of steel, wood, and glass — the exterior is clad in translucent louvers of Douglas fir over a glass curtain wall, and the effect from inside is of being wrapped in warm, filtered light. The shape has been compared to a vessel, a lantern, and cupped hands. The interior seats about 1,500 people on a gently sloping floor, with the altar at the center. A large image of Christ created from thousands of small aluminum squares catches light on the wall behind the altar. The reliquary wall in the mausoleum level below holds the relics of over a hundred saints. The building incorporates significant seismic engineering — it was designed to withstand the next major earthquake on the Hayward Fault, which runs a few miles to the east.
Diocese: Diocese of Oakland
Style: Contemporary
What to See
The interior experience is defined by light — visit on a sunny day if possible, when the Douglas fir louvers glow and the entire space is suffused with a warm amber tone. The aluminum Christ image behind the altar changes appearance depending on where you stand and how the light hits it. Walk the lower level to see the reliquary wall, where relics of saints are embedded in glass panels with identification. The baptismal font near the entrance is a substantial piece. The building is best appreciated by sitting quietly inside for a while and letting the light shift.
Pilgrim Notes
The cathedral is at the corner of Harrison Street and Grand Avenue in downtown Oakland, near Lake Merritt. BART's 19th Street station is a ten-minute walk away. Parking is available in the cathedral garage. The building is open daily and Mass is offered regularly. Oakland is directly across the bay from San Francisco — pair this with a visit to Mission Dolores, the oldest building in San Francisco, for a contrast between the city's earliest Catholic presence and its most recent cathedral.