The liturgical changes decreed by the Second Vatican Council held profound implications for all future Catholic church architecture. The revised liturgy required that services should be visible, audible and understandable and should embrace the whole congregation in active participation. Thus it became necessary to adapt the furnishings of our churches so as to bring the essential elements of worship, the altar, the presidential chair and the lectern, much closer to the congregation and to make whatever other alterations were necessary, or possible, to create a much greater sense of community in worship.

The new liturgy has, however, a significance for church architecture that went far beyond the modification and adaptation of existing buildings. What of a new church, and especially, what of a new Cathedral? Clearly, the traditional Gothic style of Church architecture was no longer relevant. The time has come for a thorough re-examination of functions and needs such as had not occurred for many hundreds of years, if ever before. The decision, firstly, to build a new, large church at Coulby Newham and secondly, that it should become the new Middlesbrough Cathedral thus came at a moment of great importance and rare opportunity for modern church architecture. Such considerations were obviously very much in Bishop Harris’ mind when he sat down to discuss the architecture of the new Cathedral, as is evidence by the rough sketch he scribbled to illustrate his thoughts on the basic plan for the building, and which survives to be reproduced here. It is clear also that the architect recognised his opportunity to create a building in total accord with the principles underlying the new forms of worship for he spent a year studying the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (Vatican II) and the subsequent Official Instructions before starting on the design.