20th Anniversary of the Dedication of the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels 2022

Most Reverend José H. Gomez
Archbishop of Los Angeles

Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels
September 2, 2022

My brothers and sisters in Christ,¹

We give glory to God today as we thank him for the gift of this great Cathedral!

I understand that 20 years ago, the day of the consecration of the Cathedral, was a nice and warm day, just like today. And it was in the afternoon at 2 and you had to wait outside for a while, so you have great memories of that day.

 So today is the same weather but we are inside.

So in a special way we give thanks to Cardinal Roger Mahoney for his leadership on the iniative of the constructing and dedicating this beautiful Cathedral. We give thanks to all the benefactors, to the priests who have served here in the Cathedral during these past 20 years, and then all the many people who work hard and sacrificed to help build this beautiful temple to the living God in the heart of this great city.

I was thinking also that we are celebrating, as you know, the Jubilee Year for the 250th anniversary of the first church in the Archdiocese, Mission San Gabriel. So I think it is especially beautiful that as we celebrate this anniversary, we also celebrate the 20th anniversary of this beautiful Cathedral.

The story of Los Angeles, and the story of this Cathedral, is part of the great story of salvation that God is still working out in the history of the nations.

And this is also the story that is told in these beautiful tapestries that surround us in this sanctuary. It is a story of witness and holiness. It is a story of seeking God and following Jesus Christ in faith and with joy.

And there is one tapestry that I have been reflecting on, thinking of this celebration. And it’s one that has St. Mark and also St. Junípero Serra. So St. Mark, as we know, wrote on of the Gospel and in the tapestry he’s standing next to St. Junípero Serra, father of the California missions and one of America’s founding fathers. And I think this is such a beautiful symbol of God’s saving plan of love.

And each of us can look for different things that are in these beautiful tapestries and obviously we have now the beautiful tapestry of Our Lady of the Angels.

So today we make our own, the beautiful prayer of the Jewish people that we hear in the first reading: “Today is holy to the Lord our God … Rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength.”

So my dear brothers and sisters, we are called to carry on the mission that began with St. Junípero Serra and the founders of this great Cathedral.

And St. Peter tells us today in the second reading that we are called to be “like living stones” in the “spiritual house” that God is building in history, in creation.

What a beautiful image. The truth is that God wants to make this world into a holy temple — a spiritual house where he lives with us in love. And he wants to build this temple with the help of each one of us.

So the Church is a living reality, it is a family, it is you and I united in Jesus Christ, in the Eucharist.

And that’s what St. Peter is talking about today. Each of us is a “living stone.” Each of us has a part to play in the beautiful work of salvation.

That’s why at the end of every celebration of the Eucharist, the Holy Mass, the Mass ends with a commission: Go forth, the Mass is ended! Go and announce the Gospel! Go, and glorify God by your life!

So what begins within these walls, is meant to continue outside these walls — in our homes, in the places where we work, in our neighborhoods, in our society. The gift that we receive at this holy table, the gift of Jesus — we are called to share with our neighbors.

This is what it means to be a living stone. It means that we devote our lives to building the kingdom of God in Los Angeles, in our country, in the world.

So it is a moment to reflect on our personal vocation, because through you and through me, Jesus wants to speak the beautiful words that we hear in the Gospel: “Today salvation has come to this house!”

Then the passage of the Gospel is beautiful story that we know about Zacchaeus, the rich tax collector. As we know, his neighbors didn’t like him too much because he was a tax collector for the Romans and they were saying when Jesus went to Zacchaeus’ home to have a meal — they were saying that Jesus was going to the house of a sinner.

My brothers and sisters, that’s the whole point of the Gospel! Jesus came into this world, not to call the “good” people, but to call sinners.

And Jesus still comes to call sinners. He still comes “to seek and to save what was lost.”

So he comes to this “house,” just as he came to Zacchaeus’ house. In every Eucharist, he comes to call us to a deeper conversion — because yes, my brothers and sisters, you and I will always be sinners; it is the human condition.

We are all sinners whom he has called to become saints, little by little, and day by day, growing in holiness and love.

But Jesus also calls us to be missionaries.

And many people who we meet in our lives who are like Zacchaeus. They are seeking to see Jesus, seeking to know him. So let us find new ways to help these people to meet Jesus and “receive him with joy,” just as Zacchaeus did!

So, my brothers and sisters, as we celebrate this anniversary, let’s ask for the grace to continue to go deeper in our conversion, deeper in our love for Jesus, in our friendship with him. Let us walk with him and dedicate ourselves again to become missionaries.

So St. Junípero Serra, founder of the Church in Los Angeles, pray for us!

And may our Blessed Mother, Our Lady of the Angels, keep each one of us — you and your families always in the mantle of her love.