This past week the parish of Upper Riccarton-Yaldhurst hosted a second hand book sale.  Just before the doors opened the Vicar General and parish vicar John Sheaf emerged with a worn paperback and said, “Bishop, bishop: this book is meant for you.”

The novel is Cathedral by Nelson de Mille. The description at the bottom of the cover states: “The epic siege novel of our time.” 

The front cover had a terrorist complete with machine gun. The only thing that seemed to be missing, I thought later, was the sequel.

With the completion of the Transitional Cathedral,  the first volume has clearly reached its completion.  The regulars have a new home; the church has been dedicated to Almighty God; and we have tonight the gathering of the city fathers and mothers; the architects from both far away (Shigeru and Yoshie)  and near at hand (Warren and Mahoney);  contractors and builders, the project manager and site manager, Anglicans from across the Diocese, and members of other churches and  faith groups.  What a joyful finish to an adventure of design and building.  What a sign of hope and encouragement to the city.  Tonight is a time to give thanks to God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

I want this evening to spend a few moments reflecting on why this building is so important for the whole city and beyond,  and then dare to explain why we must not be satisfied, in any way, yet.

First of all this Cathedral is important because it is beautiful.  In a city that is full of detours and demolished buildings; vacant lots and construction sites, beauty is incredibly important.  Beauty reminds us that we must live into our potential.  Beauty tells us to keep striving for excellence.  Beauty encourages us to grow into the people God created us to be.  Beauty reminds us that what ever we achieve, it is but a step on the journey to a new heaven and a new earth, our final destiny.  For this reason this Transitional Cathedral is a Cathedral for the whole city, because every person, no matter what his or her faith, needs to have beauty to remind them of the gift of life and the invitation to never stop growing.

Secondly, this Cathedral is a house of God.  Cities need houses of prayer and places of worship least we ever think we are all there is to life.  How very sad that would be.  So whether it is the architecture, the music, the preaching or the prayer, a Cathedral is meant to tell us there is much more to life than we can see or even imagine and this is the place to start the search. 

Thirdly, the Transitional Cathedral is clearly situated at the centre of the broken heart of this city. Beside the former CTV building, in front of the memorial to those who perished from the February earthquake, and looking out upon the Emergency services’  village site, this Cathedral stands as both a reminder of  the past and a beacon calling us forward.  I do think people need  to be reminded of hope, faith and love, and that is what this Cathedral does.

But now let’s be honest and say what this Cathedral does not and cannot achieve.  This beautiful Cathedral cannot repair the homes on the east side of Christchurch and the state of many of those homes is a crying shame.  Tonight I ask each of us to commit to doing whatever we can to speed the repairs and response to those who live in such compromised communities.

Secondly, this Cathedral alone cannot make us into the people God in Christ calls us to be.  The building of this Cathedral can inspire us but then it is up to us.  As we heard from the prophet Jeremiah (29.7): “Seek the welfare of the city where I have sent you into exile, and pray to the Lord on its behalf, for in its welfare you will find your welfare.”  There is a lot of work still to be done.

And finally, this Cathedral cannot single-handedly eradicate the culture of blame that seems to have reached epic proportions in this city.  So please, let us commit to building up, and not tearing down, the lives of the leaders and citizens of our home town.   Instead, let’s us cultivate a garden of gratitude, and toil for a harvest of deep respect, care of neighbour, and vibrant communities.   That’s a calling worthy of a second volume called CATHEDRAL:  the true story of a city named Christchurch.  Let’s write that book together.