The State of Episcopal Church Cathedrals in the US

A SPECIAL REPORT By David W. Virtue and Mary Ann Mueller
http://www.virtueonline.org/
December 16, 2010

A special VOL investigation into the state of Episcopal cathedrals across the U.S. has revealed that many are living on borrowed time, while a handful are thriving in difficult economic circumstances. Cathedrals usually occupy prime real estate locations in major cities, locations that, should they go out of business, offer great opportunities for developers or evangelical mega churches.

The cathedral of the Diocese of Western Michigan - the diocese of the now deceased Bishop Charles E. Bennison, Sr. - was sold to an evangelical mega-church for less than the price to build it. The diocese is now without a cathedral. Fire sales can be expected in other dioceses across the US in the next decade. the rest

Based on the 2009 ASA figures from The Episcopal Church, eight cathedrals have less than 100 Average Sunday Attendance (ASA). They include: Central New York, Easton, Western Kansas, Fond du Lac, Minnesota (Our Merciful Saviour in Faribault), Nebraska (both Trinity in Omaha and St. Mark's in Hastings), Pennsylvania and Pittsburgh.