Christ Cathedral Celebrates 2nd Anniversary, Shrine Unveiling

GARDEN GROVE, CA —On the second anniversary of Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove, the Diocese of Orange's main cathedral planned to unveil a new shrine reflecting the faithful in Vietnam, church officials announced.

The Our Lady of La Vang Shrine, to be placed in the redesigned Crystal Cathedral, was modeled after a vision of the Virgin Mary seen in 1798. Many Roman Catholics believe she appeared to Catholics who were traveling in a Vietnam rainforest at that time.

The Solemn Blessing Day ceremony will be held July 17 with thousands of Orange County Catholics expected to attend.

"This shrine to Our Lady of La Vang is not only another example of how beauty draws to God, but it is a testimony to the faith of our Vietnamese brothers and sisters who have contributed so much to the life of our parishes here in Orange County, and which then points us all to the Mother of God and her protection," Diocese of Orange Bishop Kevin Vann said.

"The Vietnamese community in Orange County and I are very excited to have this shrine of Our Lady of La Vang to be solemnly blessed," Bishop Thanh Thai Nguyen said. "Remembering the blessings received from her intercessions, we desire to honor her with a special place to express our deep appreciation to her past accompaniment and to petition her to continue journeying with us in our pilgrimage of life. Our hearts are filled with joy and gratitude as we look forward to seeing Our Lady of La Vang here on our beautiful Christ Cathedral campus."

The 12-foot-tall shrine weighs about 16,000 pounds and was carved from white marble from Italy, officials said.

The statue, estimated at $12.6 million, took about 18 months to sculpt and will be placed in the northeast corner of the Christ Cathedral campus.

Read: Crystal Cathedral Transformed To Christ Cathedral Catholic Church

City News Service, Patch Editor Ashley Ludwig contributed to this report.