It’s tough call. It's got consequences, as they’re saying, it looks like the Cathedral night be mothballed because they can’t figure out how else to raise the money.
But frankly, the country can’t afford to give them another $60 million.
We're living on our credit card. We’ve already stumped up $25 million, and let’s remember, this is privately-owned church. It's owned by the Anglicans. It’s not like we’re helping to build something that belongs to us, it belongs to the Anglicans, and they are reportedly sitting on about $2.9b worth of assets at last count.
To be fair to them, they didn't want to rebuild the cathedral but were forced into it by public opinion, but they are the ones who stand to benefit from the rebuild.
I don't want to appear to be callous about a place that is very important to Christchurch, but Christchurch, can I point out, has had a lot of taxpayer assistance, quite rightly, in recovering from the earthquake.
There has got to be a limit to it.
I want to compare it to Wellington.
Wellington actually suffered a lot more than people realise from that 2016 Kaikoura earthquake. I think we’ve come to release that the most likely explanation for all the pipes bursting in Wellington currently is because of that quake.
There has been, as far as I can see, no taxpayer assistance for Wellington in dealing with that.
Now I realise it’s not a straight comparison. The Christchurch quake of 2011 was miles bigger and far more devastating than the 2016 Kaikoura quake, and so of course Wellington would not be assisted to the level that Christchurch has been.
But the point I'm trying to make is that, apart from some funding for privately held residences, Wellington has not been helped. Christchurch has been helped a lot.
Maybe it’s time for the Anglicans to help now. It's their building after all.
Heather du Plessis-Allan is a journalist and commentator who hosts Newstalk ZB's Drive show HERE - where this article was sourced.
7 comments:
Must be this solution - given the tough times.
The projected shortfall has to be broken down into construction and consultants . I believe the reality is that the cost plus consultants will be the reason the cathedral is mothballed
It should not be forgotten that the Anglican Church’s preferred option at the outset was to demolish the cathedral and build anew, retaining some elements of the original. A similar approach has been done successfully elsewhere. Demolishing would have likely resulted in a less expensive, more up-to-date, better functioning cathedral, both for religious activities and for social outreach.
But then there was opposition from heritage groups and members of the public. It is doubtful how many of these people were Christian, let alone Anglican. The government appointed an independent negotiator and effectively the Anglican Church was reluctantly obliged to take the path of reconstruction.
As reconstruction was being undertaken, it was found that the cathedral is more a pile of unstable rubble than expected. This requires additional work and expense to fix and stabilise the building, and is the main reason for the “cost blowout”.
In my opinion if the Anglican Church had been left alone to deal with the situation without outside interference – and really the current statements that it is “private property” is a bit rich, to put it mildly – it would have been resolved by now.
I also feel there is a certain amount of anti-Christian attitude being shown in the MSM and by politicians in how this is issue is being framed.
LFC
I'm from ChCh and have a very large circle of friends here. I only know one that wants it rebuilt out some misguided nostalgia.
Tear it down.
If the Anglicans would give up their rebellious ways and return to the fold of the Catholic Church, then they could band together and rebuild the Basilica of the Sacred Heart. The unstable remains of the Cathedral could be demolished as a gesture of penance and good faith.
Many individual Anglican lay-people and clergy have seen the light and rejoined the Catholic Church. It is high time that the organisation as a whole did so.
After all, Henry VIII was given the title of Defender of the Faith for his defence of the Catholic faith, not the Anglican: he just lost his head when it came to not getting his own way regarding divorces. The protestants then wound up Queen Elizabeth mightily, and it all turned to custard. Time for a return to unity.
Perhaps Hdpa and other opponents of reconstruction should visit some of the wonderful cathedrals and buildings restored after two world wars in Europe. I suggest Rheims as an example. Its not just a building, its part of the city's soul.
Rebuild! Let's have a public subscription with some muscle in it. It IS part of the city's soul - Christchurch would be much the poorer for its loss.
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