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Garden Grove (Los Angeles area) Christ Cathedral & Shrine of Our Lady of La Vang

About the Diocese of Orange County:

Garden Grove is a city in northern Orange County and is 34 miles southeast of the city of Los Angeles in the Los Angeles metropolitan area.  Due to the tremendous growth in this area, the the Diocese of Orange was split from the Diocese of Los Angles in June 1976.  Its original Cathedral was in the Church of the Holy Family.

The demographics have changed over the years, and now has a large immigrant population from heavily Catholic countries.  As of 2010, The Diocese of Orange was home to 1.3 million Catholics, making it the 10th largest in the country.

About Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove:

With the need to expand and build a larger Cathedral, it was obviously going to be tremendously expensive due to the astronomical property prices in this area.  Then, an opportunity opened up.  A building that was once home to evangelist Reverend Robert H. Schuller for his Garden Grove Community Church congregation was put up for sale.  The campus was home to one of the first megachurches, the Crystal Cathedral, an ultra-modern, mostly glass structure. Schuller’s televised “Hour of Power” shows created the basis for an international Christian center, which continues today.

Financial difficulties, as well as turmoil with the board of directors (by now Rev. Schuller had retired and the board had changed directions), forced them  in to bankruptcy and, so in 2012. the 34-acre campus and its buildings were sold to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange. The campus has now become the new spiritual center of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange, the Christ Cathedral Campus.

About the Shrine of Our Lady of La Vang:

Located on the grounds here, this contemporary outdoor display serves as a testament to the remarkable journey of the Vietnamese-American people — from war and persecution to a new reality where faith and community are vibrant and ascendant. The shrine’s centerpiece is a 12-foot tall Virgin Mary statue resembling how the Blessed Mother is believed to have appeared before a group of persecuted Vietnamese Catholics in 1798 in a rain forest of Vietnam.

Since then, Our Lady of La Vang has represented hope, faith and promise to Vietnamese Catholics around the world.

The Shrine was blessed in a special event on July 17, 2021. Some of the photos of that event are shown above.  Photos courtesy of Christ Cathedral.

 

Finding Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove:

Address:  13280 Chapman Ave., Garden Grove, CA 92840

Tel: +1  714-971-2141

email:  parish@christcathedralparish.org

Click here for the official website of Christ Cathedral in Garden Grove.

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