Epiphany Cathedral (Venice, Florida)

Epiphany Cathedral
Epiphany Cathedral
	Location in Florida Epiphany Cathedral (Venice, Florida) (the United States)
	27°06′04″N82°26′56″W / 27.1012°N 82.4488°W
Location	310 Sarasota St.; Venice, Florida
Country	United States
Denomination	Roman Catholic Church
Website	www.epiphanycathedral.org
History
Founded	1955
Architecture
Style	Modern
Completed	1980
Administration
Diocese	Venice in Florida
Clergy
Bishop(s)	Most Rev. Frank J. Dewane
Rector	Very Rev. Msgr. Patrick Dubois

Last updated December 14, 2024

Epiphany Cathedral is a Roman Catholic cathedral located in Venice, Florida, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Venice.

History

Epiphany Parish

Epiphany Parish can trace its founding to 1935 when it became a mission station of St. Martha Parish in Sarasota, Florida. The mission was founded, in part, because the faculty and students at the Kentucky Military Institute had to make a 36-mile round trip journey to attend Mass in Sarasota. The first Mass in the mission was celebrated in the Gulf Theatre for 20 people.^[1] The Rev. Charles Elslander was the pastor at St. Martha's at the time. The first Epiphany Church was the former chapel from the Venice Army Airfield. It was moved from the base to the corner of Tampa Avenue and Nassau Street in 1947. It was purchased and furnished for $11,165.30.^[1] Epiphany became a parish on March 7, 1955, and the Rev. Michael M. Reynolds was named as the parish's first pastor. St. Raphael's Parish was founded from Epiphany in 1958.

Ground was broken for a new church in 1959 and it was completed the following year. The former church was renovated into a parish hall. A mission was established from Epiphany in Warm Mineral Springs. It became San Pedro Parish two years later. As the parish continued to expand Marian Hall was built in 1978 to accommodate more Masses and other parish functions. Ground for the present church was broken in February 1979. It was dedicated by Bishop W. Thomas Larkin of St. Petersburg on June 29, 1980. The previous church was remodeled for a parish hall and the original church was torn down.

Epiphany Cathedral

Pope John Paul II established the Diocese of Venice on June 16, 1984.^[2] Epiphany became the cathedral for the new diocese. Bishop John J. Nevins was installed as the diocese's first bishop. Two years later Our Lady of Lourdes Parish in Venice was founded from Epiphany Cathedral. Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish in Osprey was founded from the cathedral in 2001. On July 25, 2006 Frank J. Dewane was ordained coadjutor bishop of Venice.^[3] He was the first bishop ordained in the cathedral.^[1]

Parish School

Epiphany School was started by Msgr. George W. Cummings in 1959 with 66 students in four grades.^[1] Classes were held at the Kentucky Military Institute until the parish school building was completed. The school building was originally a single story. A second story was added in 1966. Benedictine Sisters taught at the school from 1959 to 1968. They were replaced by Franciscan Sisters from Syracuse, New York and taught in the school until 1974. At that time two Benedictines joined the lay teachers on the staff. In 1977 they were joined by three School Sisters of Notre Dame and two Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

Kindergarten was added in 1978. Marion Hall, a multi-purpose facility, was built on the east side of the school in 1979. The following year grades 6-8 were formed into a middle school. A computer lab and a new playground were added in 1983. Pre-Kindergarten was added in 1987. As enrollment increased additions were made to the building. An annex was added to the south-side of the building in 1990. The cafeteria, media center, pre-school classrooms and music room were added between 1991 and 1993. An annex building replaced the former convent and the former rectory in 1996. Santa Maria Chapel was added to the school building in 1998. It was provided by a benefactor. Enrollment declined in the early 2000s and grades were reduced to one grade per classroom. The annex building was given to the parish to use for offices. In 2007 Epiphany School was given a Blue Ribbon of Excellence Award.^[1]

Pastors/Rectors

The following priests have served as the pastor of Epiphany Parish and since 1984 as the cathedral rector:^[1]

Msgr. Charles Elslander (Mission from Sarasota; 1935–1955)
Rev. Michael M. Reynolds (1955)
Rev. Noah E. Brunner (administrator; 1955–1956)
Msgr. George W. Cummings (1956–1976)
Rev. Esteban G. Soy (1976–1999)
Rev. Robert R. Cannon (1999–2003)
Rev. George Ratzmann (2003–2008)
Rev. John F. Costello (2008–2021)
Very Rev. Msgr. Patrick Dubois (2021–Present)

Related Research Articles

Sacred Heart Cathedral, located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, is a Catholic cathedral and a parish church in the Diocese of Davenport. The cathedral is located on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River to the east of Downtown Davenport. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Cathedral Complex. This designation includes the church building, rectory, and the former convent, which was torn down in 2012. The cathedral is adjacent to the Cork Hill Historic District, also on the National Register. Its location on Cork Hill, a section of the city settled by Irish immigrants.

The Cathedral of Saint Patrick is the seat of the Roman Catholic Church in Charlotte, North Carolina, United States of America. It is the mother church of the Diocese of Charlotte and is the seat of its bishop. In 1987 it was included as a contributing property in the Dilworth Historic District, listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Cathedral of Saint Augustine is a Catholic cathedral and parish church located in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. It is the seat of the Bishop of the Diocese of Kalamazoo. The parish was founded in 1856, the present church building was completed in 1951, and it was raised to cathedral status in 1970.

The Diocese of Venice in Florida is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory–or diocese, of the Catholic Church in southwest Florida in the United States. It was founded on June 16, 1984. Frank Dewane has been bishop since 2007. The Diocese of Venice in Florida is a suffragan diocese of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Miami.

St. Agnes Cathedral is a Roman Catholic Cathedral in Rockville Centre, New York, on Long Island. It is the seat of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. The Most Reverend John Oliver Barres is the ordinary bishop of the Diocese and pastor of the Cathedral parish. The Saint Agnes Cathedral School is on campus with the cathedral.

The Cathedral of Saint Mary is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami. The cathedral is named for Mary, mother of Jesus, and is located at 7525 N.W. 2nd Avenue, Miami, Florida, United States. Since June 2010, Archbishop Thomas Gerard Wenski has served as the archbishop of Miami, Rev. Christopher Marino is the cathedral's rector.

Frank Joseph Dewane is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He has been serving as bishop of the Diocese of Venice in Florida since 2007.

St. Andrew's Catholic Church is a Catholic church in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1886, it is the oldest Catholic parish in Pasadena and one of the oldest in Los Angeles County. Its Romanesque Revival campanile bell tower is visible for miles and is one of the landmarks of Pasadena. The interior of the current church, built in 1927, was modeled after the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, while the façade was modeled after the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, down the hill and slightly upriver from Santa Sabina.

The Church of the Little Flower is a Roman Catholic church in Coral Gables, Florida founded in 1926. The church's domed 1951 building was constructed in Spanish Renaissance style, in keeping with the Mediterranean Revival architecture for which Coral Gables is noted.

Cathedral of St. Raymond Nonnatus is a Catholic cathedral in Joliet, Illinois, United States. It is the seat and a parish of the Diocese of Joliet in Illinois.

The Cathedral of the Epiphany is a cathedral and a parish church located in Sioux City, Iowa, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Sioux City.

St. Michael's Catholic Church is a former parish of the Diocese of Davenport. The church is located in the unincorporated village of Holbrook, east of Parnell, Iowa, United States. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as St. Michael's Church, Cemetery, Rectory, and Ancient Order of Hibernians Hall in 1983.

St. Adalbert Parish - dubbed the "Cathedral of the West Side" - is a Catholic parish in South Bend, Indiana, United States. The parish was founded in 1910, and is one of the Roman Catholic parishes in the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

St. Catherine of Siena is a Roman Catholic parish in Trumbull, Connecticut, part of the Diocese of Bridgeport.

The Cathedral of St. Joseph is a Catholic cathedral in St. Joseph, Missouri, United States. Along with the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Kansas City, Missouri it is the seat of the Diocese of Kansas City-St. Joseph. The Cathedral Church, rectory and convent are all contributing properties to the Cathedral Hill Historic District on the National Register of Historic Places. The school building and the auditorium do not contribute to the historical nature of the district.

St. Agnes Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in Springfield, Missouri, United States. Along with the Cathedral of St. Mary of the Annunciation in Cape Girardeau, Missouri it is the seat of the Diocese of Springfield-Cape Girardeau.

St. Matthew Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral in South Bend, Indiana, United States. Along with Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Fort Wayne, it is the seat of the Diocese of Fort Wayne-South Bend.

The Cathedral of the Holy Angels is a Catholic cathedral located in Gary, Indiana, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Gary, and the home of Holy Angels Parish.

St. Bernard Catholic Church, in Madison, Wisconsin, United States, is a parish church in the Diocese of Madison. The parish was founded in 1907 and the church building was completed in 1927. In 2023, Bishop Donald J. Hying petitioned the Holy See to designate the church building as the diocesan cathedral. Pope Francis erected St. Bernard's as the new cathedral the same year. The consecration of the church as a cathedral is expected to take place in 2025.

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 "Brief History of Epiphany Cathedral". Epiphany Cathedral. Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
↑ "Diocese of Venice in Florida". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2011-10-05.
↑ "Bishop Frank Joseph Dewane". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2011-10-05.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[Cathedral-1] 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Brief History of Epiphany Cathedral". Epiphany Cathedral. Archived from the original on 2012-04-25. Retrieved 2011-10-05.

[Hierarchy-2] "Diocese of Venice in Florida". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2011-10-05.

[Dewane-3] "Bishop Frank Joseph Dewane". Catholic-Hierarchy. Retrieved 2011-10-05.

[1]

[2]

[3]

v t e Roman Catholic Diocese of Venice in Florida
Bishops	John Joseph Nevins Frank Joseph Dewane
Churches	Cathedral Epiphany Cathedral
Education	Higher education Ave Maria University High schools Bishop Verot High School, Fort Myers Cardinal Mooney High School, Sarasota St. John Neumann High School, Naples Rhodora J. Donahue Academy, Ave Maria Grade school St. Elizabeth Seton School, Naples
Miscellany	Florida Catholic
Catholicismportal