Letters: The mass appeal of cathedrals

Mass appeal

Sir: The upcoming ‘rave’ at Peterborough Cathedral follows the trajectory of using this sacred space as a mere entertainment venue (‘Raving mad’, 14 September). Previous secular attempts to commercialise include ‘experiences’ of the moon, dinosaurs, the deep sea and light shows.

I assume the rave organisers did not witness the cathedral in June when a Saturday evening vigil mass was celebrated by the Catholic Bishop of East Anglia for local Catholics. When used for its original and sacred purpose, Peterborough Cathedral was filled with Catholics participating in the divine liturgy. Many were standing for want of seats, like some of our churches on Sundays.

It was worth renting out the cathedral, not only to celebrate mass with other Peterborough Catholics, but to show what was and what could have been had England stayed on the narrow path. While I agree with Douglas Murray that it is awe-inspiring to see the building when empty, it is abundantly more uplifting to see the cathedral rightly filled.