b'F E A T U R E S T O R Y150-year-old Cathedral of the Holy Cross receives first-ever renovationF ornearly150years,theCathedralofthe HolyCrosshasbeenastapleinBostons Catholiccommunityandhasplayedhost to many significant events in U.S. history, including 1964s requiem mass to mourn the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, Pope John Paul IIs first trip to the United States as leader of the Catholic Churchin1979andaninterfaithservicewhere President Barack Obama addressed the nation after the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing. Generations of use had taken a toll on the cathedral, which is the largest Catholic church in New England and is the mother church of the Boston archdiocese. Tasked with bringing the cathedral into the 21st cen-tury while maintaining its old-world charm, Suffolk Construction was chosen along with Elkus Manfredi Architectstoleadoneofitslargestrenovations The Cathedral of the Holy Cross is the largest Roman Catholic church in New England and seats nearly 2,000 people. Its Gothic Revival style incorporates local Roxbury puddingstone and gray limestone.Robert Benson Photography36TileLetter | March 2020'