Comodoro Rivadavia Cathedral is the cathedral church of

Comodoro Rivadavia Comodoro Rivadavia () is a city in the Patagonian province of Chubut in southern Argentina, located on the San Jorge Gulf, an inlet of the Atlantic Ocean, at the foot of the Chenque Hill. Comodoro Rivadavia is the most important city of the San ...

, Chubut Province, Argentina. It is situated at the intersection of Avenida Belgrano and Rivadavia. The cathedral is the city's main Roman Catholic church, serving the

Diocese of Comodoro Rivadavia The Roman Catholic Diocese of Comodoro is located in the city of Comodoro, in the Patagonian province of Chubut in southern Argentina. Diocese The Roman Catholic Diocese of Comodoro Rivadavia encompasses 234,000 km² (90,382 Square Miles) o ...

, part of the

Archdiocese of Bahía Blanca In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...

. It was inaugurated by Bishop Moure Argimiro on November 26, 1978, and consecrated on June 9, 1979, by Monsignor Mariano Pérez, first Bishop of Comodoro Rivadavia. The building was constructed in

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

- Modern style; some elements, such as a stained glass window, were brought from Turin, Italy, in 1959.

History

Until 1941, the only religious establishment in Comodoro Rivadavia was the chapel in the

Colegio María Auxiliadora Colegio María Auxiliadora ("Mary Help of Christians") located in Carolina, Puerto Rico, is a co-educational catholic school that belongs to the school system of the Archdiocese of San Juan de Puerto Rico. This institution offers courses from pre- ...

. On the initiative of the military governor, General Armando Raggio, plans were prepared for a larger church. This led to the construction of the San Pedro Crypt, which was first used at Christmas 1949."Catedral San Juan Bosco de Comodoro Rivadavia"
, Comodoro Rivadavia — Chubut Argentina. Retrieved 15 September 2013. As a result of the growth of Comodoro Rivadavia into a large city, a bishopric was established on February 11, 1957, by

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

, encompassing the whole of Chubut Province. The first bishop of Comodoro Rivadavia was Carlos Mariano Pérez, who took up office on July 6, 1957, remaining until December 26, 1963, when he was transferred to the Archdiocese of Salta. Work on the cathedral began in 1958, above the San Pedro Crypt, and was completed in November 1978. Dedicated to the patron saint of the diocese, John Bosco (''San Juan Bosco''), the cathedral was consecrated on July 9, 1979, by Bishop Argimiro Daniel Moure in the presence of President Rafael Videla."Reseña Histórica"
, Obispado de Comodoro Rivadavia. Retrieved 15 September 2013. The current bishop, Joaquín Gimeno Lahoz, was appointed on July 15, 2010, and was consecrated as a Bishop on October 15, 2010.

Architecture and fittings

Built above the San Pedro Crypt (underground crypt, also a bomb shelter) in the Gothic Modern style by local architect Pedro Carballo (who significantly adapted earlier plans by the engineer Guillermo Martín), the cathedral measures in length. It has a width of and is built with brick and concrete. The 12 columns inside the cathedral represent the

12 apostles In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary Disciple (Christianity), disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. Dur ...

."La Catedral es uno de los pocos edificios construido en medio de un bulevar"
, ''Patagónico'', 7 September 2008. Retrieved 15 September 2013. The external tower rises to a height of , topped by an aluminum cross high. The cathedral's large windows represent the openness of the community. The Dutch chandeliers and the 14

Stations of the Cross The Stations of the Cross or the Way of the Cross, also known as the Way of Sorrows or the Via Crucis, refers to a series of images depicting Jesus Christ on the day of Crucifixion of Jesus, his crucifixion and accompanying prayers. The station ...

were designed by Yadwiga Szymañski de Koprowski while Dolores Ocampo de Morón painted the large central mural. The cathedral, built in a constricted space in busy Avenida Rivadavia boulevard, has no garden area surrounding it and the paths are concreted. The travel guide book publisher Lonely Planet called the building the "ugliest cathedral you'll ever see". In 2011, a new sound system was installed in the building which is reported to be the first of its kind in a Catholic church in the country.

References

External links

*{{commonscat-inline, Kathedrale San Juan Bosco
Photographs of the cathedral from Obispado de Comodoro Rivadavia
20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in Argentina Buildings and structures in Chubut Province Roman Catholic cathedrals in Argentina 1978 establishments in Argentina Roman Catholic churches completed in 1978

History

Architecture and fittings

See also

References

External links