Hundreds turn out for annual Bishop's Dinner

Friday, Sep. 23, 2016

SALT LAKE CITY — More than 500 people from throughout the Diocese of Salt Lake City gathered at the Grand America Hotel Sept. 15 for the 2016 Bishop’s Dinner, the annual fundraiser for the Cathedral of the Madeleine. 

Among those attending were Elder M. Russell Ballard, a member of the Quorum of Twelve of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, who was accompanied by his wife, Geraldine; Jackie Biskupski, mayor of Salt Lake City, and her spouse, Betty Iverson; Monsignor Colin F. Bircumshaw, administrator of the Diocese of Salt Lake City; Monsignor J. Terrence Fitzgerald, vicar general emeritus; the diocesan chancellor, Deacon George Reade, and his wife, Mary; the Very Rev. Rick Lawson, dean emeritus of St. Mark’s Cathedral; and Robert Bliss, widower of the late Anna Campbell Bliss, who was honored at the dinner.

Anna Campbell Bliss, who had been a parishioner of the Cathedral of the Madeleine and was a member of the advisory committee during its restoration, had a deep-seated faith, and the cathedral “was a source of comfort for her,” said Monsignor Joseph M. Mayo, the former cathedral rector, on the video tribute to her.

Campbell Bliss was a well-regarded artist whose works can be seen in various prominent places in Salt Lake City. One of her pieces, Light of Grace, was installed in St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Sandy.

“I think I can see Anna’s faith in her work: There’s a universal quality that you can see and feel, and then the experience of light is something that also relates to the sacred,” said Anne Mooney, an architect and cathedral parishioner, in the tribute. “I don’t think there’s another artist in Utah that really understands color like Anna, and she was able to give that to the Catholic community through that piece in St. Thomas More – something that changes with the environment, that changes with the light, that is something that she brought to the community.”  

The keynote speaker for the Bishop’s Dinner was Gregory Glenn, founder and pastoral administrator of The Madeleine Choir School, who spoke on the future role of the cathedral in the community.

Acknowledging that “these are indeed very challenging times” for the Catholic Church because of declining numbers of parishioners, he said that the cathedral should address the challenges through the liturgy, the arts and education/formation.

“The cathedral is first and foremost the great house of the liturgy, the house wherein we learn the creating, saving and loving activity of God … The cathedral must continue to be the great house of the liturgy, beckoning us, challenging us, and preparing us for cooperation in the divine life – the life that forever empties itself for the sake of the other,” Glenn said. 

At the same time, “the cathedral has a unique role in our community, continuing the long tradition of cathedrals throughout the world, in engaging and supporting the arts,” and also needs to invite people “to step out of the very loud world of the constantly blaring media, and reconnect with our Catholic intellectual and spiritual mission, with classes, lectures, retreats and spiritual exercises,” he said.

In addition, the cathedral must take an active role in social justice issues, he said. Quoting from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “Letter from a Birmingham Jail” – “If today’s church does not recapture the sacrificial spirit of the early church, it will lose its authenticity, forfeit the loyalty of millions, and be dismissed as an irrelevant social club with no meaning for the twentieth century. …” – Glenn said, “these prophetic words … may be coming true today. In engaging the city and its many problems and challenges, the Church needs to emerge with a strong message, a cathedral message, about creating a civilization of love and mercy. We will never advance God’s kingdom by remaining behind our stained-glass windows. We see in those windows the great saving acts of a loving God and they beckon us to lives of service, compassion and greater concern for the dignity of each and every human life.”

Financial contributions are necessary for the cathedral to continue its work, Glenn said, and he urged those at the dinner to support the cathedral “so that it may continue its legacy of service, addressing the challenges of our church and society into the coming century.”

He echoed the sentiment of Frank Layden, retired head coach of the Utah Jazz, who served as master of ceremonies for the event. Layden pointed out that the cathedral, a “wonderful piece of art” that is 107 years old, “needs repair, it needs upkeep … It needs work, and work takes money. And so, while I hate to mention this, it’s necessary. … We have to do everything we can to take care of it and make it even better.”