The Sanctuary
The sanctuary in the midst of the assembly is designed to give the sense of people gathered around the altar in a corporate act of worship. The action of the liturgy is not confined to the sanctuary: the whole cathedral is the place where worship is offered to God by the Church.
The key elements in the sanctuary are the bishop's chair (cathedra), ambo and altar. They were designed by architect, Robin Gibson, and crafted in Carrara marble by Peter Schipperheyn.
The Bishop's Chair
The bishop's chair echoes the simple form of ancient bishops' seats from the early middle ages. It is surmounted with a steel frame which refers to the form of the bisho's mitre and which evokes the presence of the bishop as chief pastor in his cathedral church.
The Ambo
Readings from scripture play an important part in the celebration of all the sacraments. Just as people are fed with the Lord's body and blood from the table of the Eucharist, so too are they nourished on the Word of God proclaimed in the liturgical assembly. The ambo's design and proportions emphasise its balanced relationship with the altar.
The Altar
The altar changed in shape in the middle ages when the priest began to celebrate the eucharist with his back to the people. It sometimes was reduced to a kind of shelf in a highly ornate wall or backdrop. It was elongated to allow for the reading of the epistle and gospel at either end. Today it is again free-standing and of a smaller, squarer shape. The altar, where the sacrifice of the cross is made present under sacramental signs, is also the table of the Lord. The people of God is called together to share in this table. The double aspect of altar and table is held together through the design of St Stephen's altar and its change in texture.