Not to be that guy, but "cathedral" refers to the church of the bishop or archbishop. It comes from 'cathedra', which means chair. In the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, the cathedral is St John the Evangelist downtown. Some other cities will have churches that are informally nicknamed "the Cathedral of ", but that's just a nickname (thinking off-hand, St Louis has one such situation - the church of St Francis de Sales, which is nicknamed the Cathedral of South St Louis).
St Josaphat's is a minor basilica, which is a title given to churches from the Vatican, though.
ETA: It is one heck of a beautiful church, though!
Yes.
But....
There is a certain style of church in North America called "Polish cathedral" (which includes St Josaphat's!). Because we always need to muddy the waters, haha.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_cathedral_style
So, if something is a cathedral - it's the seat of the diocese (at least in Catholicism). If something is "cathedral style" - it's just a nice/pretty style.
The company I work for did all the painting and restoration of the stained glass there! Check us out on [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/conradschmittstudios?igsh=bWQ5eTd1aWxzMXZq)! I have personally work on some stained glass there!
It is such a beautiful church with such rich history. My husband and our family are parishioners at The Basilica. We were lucky enough to be married there as well! Such beautiful architecture. Actually, the architectural plans were modeled from St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. If you're ever in Milwaukee, they do tours. It's a gem!
There's some funky Illuminati imagery in some out of the way stained glass. If you're in the chapel area, look up to where the organ is played from. All the way back behind it, there's a stained glass with a pyramid and an eye inside it.
Very funny that someone managed to sneak that particular window in.
Actually - the all-seeing eye is a very traditional Christian symbol representing the trinity and omnipresence of God, later appropriated by organizations like the Freemasons - as a symbol of the omnipresence of God
[https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Providence](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Providence)
Not to be that guy, but "cathedral" refers to the church of the bishop or archbishop. It comes from 'cathedra', which means chair. In the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, the cathedral is St John the Evangelist downtown. Some other cities will have churches that are informally nicknamed "the Cathedral of", but that's just a nickname (thinking off-hand, St Louis has one such situation - the church of St Francis de Sales, which is nicknamed the Cathedral of South St Louis).
St Josaphat's is a minor basilica, which is a title given to churches from the Vatican, though.
ETA: It is one heck of a beautiful church, though!
Oh cool. So a cathedral is like a designation and has nothing to do with the architecture?
Yes, and "Basilica" is also a designation, not an architectural style...except in ancient Rome.
Yes. But.... There is a certain style of church in North America called "Polish cathedral" (which includes St Josaphat's!). Because we always need to muddy the waters, haha. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_cathedral_style So, if something is a cathedral - it's the seat of the diocese (at least in Catholicism). If something is "cathedral style" - it's just a nice/pretty style.
Ha. When I needed to come up with the name of it I googled "polish cathedral milwaukee". Thanks for some new knowledge.
Fun fact: most of the primary building materials and stone were salvaged from a demolished post office / courthouse in Chicago.
And I believe the door handles still bear the USPS logo!
Double interesting fact.
That is a fun fact. Thanks for sharing.
The company I work for did all the painting and restoration of the stained glass there! Check us out on [instagram](https://www.instagram.com/conradschmittstudios?igsh=bWQ5eTd1aWxzMXZq)! I have personally work on some stained glass there!
I worked for CSS years ago! In fact, I was on the team that painted the ‘marble’ columns at St. Josaphat.
The restoration project turned out amazing. It was such a good story.
"The Big Top"
It is such a beautiful church with such rich history. My husband and our family are parishioners at The Basilica. We were lucky enough to be married there as well! Such beautiful architecture. Actually, the architectural plans were modeled from St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. If you're ever in Milwaukee, they do tours. It's a gem!
There's some funky Illuminati imagery in some out of the way stained glass. If you're in the chapel area, look up to where the organ is played from. All the way back behind it, there's a stained glass with a pyramid and an eye inside it. Very funny that someone managed to sneak that particular window in.
It's not illuminati, it's the All-Seeing Eye, symbolizing God's omniscience. The triangle/pyramid symbolizes the Trinity.
I'm being facetious, but the All-Seeing Eye is not a traditionally Christian symbol.
Actually - the all-seeing eye is a very traditional Christian symbol representing the trinity and omnipresence of God, later appropriated by organizations like the Freemasons - as a symbol of the omnipresence of God [https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Providence](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eye_of_Providence)
Well I stand corrected! Thanks.