Considered the “Sistine of the South” due to its great artistic beauty, Savannah’s Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist is a local landmark and the oldest—and largest—Roman Catholic church in the southeast. Built in 1867, its white steeples tower over the skyline of the historic city and welcome the faithful and hundreds of thousands of tourists each year.
Like many older buildings, time (and multiple fires) had slowly faded the regal interior of this neo-Gothic space. In 1998, Bishop Emeritus John Kevin Boland began an $11 million renovation to restore the original splendor and renew its spirit and legacy. Then-Rector Monsignor William O’Neill collaborated with a team of designers, artists, and artisans for two years with the requirement to stay true to the architectural and liturgical designs of the 18th century while updating the space with Vatican II guidelines.
The master plan, developed and executed by Liturgical Designer Rolf Rohn of Rohn & Associates Design, included space formation; liturgical furniture restoration and design (including the altar, ambo, tabernacle, baptismal font, ambry, presider and deacon chairs, St. Joseph side altar confessional, and crucifix image for the other side altar); custom appointments; and new lighting and HVAC systems, flooring, and pews.
Artisans replicated the detailing of the original high raredos on the new main altar. The 9,000-pound white Carrara marble piece features the Latin inscription, "Beati Qui Ad Cenam Agni Vocati Sunt." This translates to, "Blessed are they who are called to the banquet of the Lamb," a quotation from Revelation 19:9. The priests and Bishop of the Diocese of Savannah generously donated the altar to the Cathedral Basilica.
The baptismal font was designed to match the front panels of the main altar and raredos, which were cast in the 1700s. Artists crafted molds of the raredos design on-site and sent them to Carrara, Italy, to be applied to the new font while it was being constructed. The octagonal piece weighs an intentional 8,000 pounds (the number eight represents rebirth or resurrection, which is the essence of the sacrament of Baptism). Another Latin inscription carved in the font reminds recipients that they are beginning their faith journey with Christ: “He who sent me to baptize with water, he it is who baptizes with the Holy Spirit." The early parishioners were mostly Irish, so a Celtic theme and gold mosaic representing eternity was incorporated into its inner granite base.
A side altar was also rebuilt with matching marble frames for the three oils and fitted with bronze doors inlaid with granite from Poland to create the ambry. The design was based on the existing side altar. Finally, the Four Evangelist and Gospel symbols were introduced into the cathedral's pulpit, a replica of one destroyed by an arsonist in 2003.
The renovation of the Mother Church of the Diocese of Savannah was completed in 2000 just in time for the 150th diocesan anniversary celebrations and the 100th anniversary of the rededication of the cathedral. This majestic sacred space is now a true gateway to Heaven and a place worthy of the responsibility of the location for special liturgical celebrations and to provide pastoral outreach to the people of God.
In 2020, the Holy Father recognized its architectural and artistic beauty, historical value, and significance as a center of worship and proclaimed it a minor basilica.
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