The Cathedral: Chronology
1960
Vandals deface the Cathedral with anti-semitic slogans, apparently
to protest the Cathedral's friendly relations with New York's
Jewish community. Riverside Church is also defaced. John Vernon
Butler is named Dean, replacing Dean Pike who leaves to become
Bishop of California.
1964
Six thousand attend an ecumenical service to support civil rights
legislation and to call for an end to racial segregation.
1965
Bishop Donegan reveals that some wealthy donors have withdrawn
financial support for the Cathedral because of his staunch support
for the cause of civil rights.
1967
Bishop Donegan puts an end to plans to complete the Cathedral
in a modern style, decreeing it will remain unfinished as symbol
of the anguish of the troubled communities surrounding the Cathedral.
1968
New York City Mayor John Lindsay and Roman Catholic Archbishop
Terence Cooke participate in an interfaith prayer service to
address the urban crisis. Madeleine L'Engle publishes The Young
Unicorns, a novel for young adults set at the Cathedral.Duke
Ellington premieres his Second Sacred Concert at the Cathedral
to critical acclaim.
1969
A solemn litany listing names of U.S. servicemen killed in action
is part of a nationwide protest against the escalating war in
Vietnam.
1970
Leopold Stokowski conducts Andrzej Panufnik's A Universal Prayer for
orchestra and chorus.
1971
Massive peace rally at the Cathedral. ACT, an after-school and
summer program for community children, is established. ACT currently
serves hundreds of children annually. Performance of Mass in
F by Galt McDermott, composer of Hair.
1972
Bishop Donegan retires and is succeeded by Paul Moore, Jr., 13th
Bishop of New York. James Parks Morton is named Dean. Bishop
Moore and Dean Morton expand the Cathedral's advocacy of peace,
social justice and the environment.
Based on information from the Cathedral's Web Page