“If it is God’s will for us to move, we believe it will be where He needs us most,” she said. “It does not mean that our ministry will be diminished. Crystal Cathedral church is not a building. A church is comprised of people who are dedicated to practicing through words and works.

After more than four years of familial and financial turmoil, Orange County’s iconic Crystal Cathedral will be sold to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange.

The saga of this megachurch, which grew from a humble ministry in the Orange drive-in and rose to grandeur with its shimmering glass tower, sanctuary and world-renowned “Hour of Power” television program, will now likely continue in a much smaller, relatively unknown building not far from its current home.

Late Thursday evening U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Robert Kwan issued the ruling, acknowledging the tremendous work put in by Chapman University, the diocese’s competitor, which offered as much as $59 million for the 40-acre Crystal Cathedral campus. The diocese will get the property for $57.5 million.

Under the diocese’s plan, the ministry will be able to lease the core buildings – including the cathedral and the Tower of Hope – for three years, at $100,000 a month during the first year and $150,000 for years two and three. They also will be able to lease the school building for $10,000 a month until the end of school year 2013.

After three years, Crystal Cathedral Ministries and the school will move to the 10-acre property on Lewis Street where St. Callistus is now located.

Several longtime congregants who supported Chapman’s bid in an effort to remain in their home church left in tears after the judge announced the decision.

The Rev. Tod Brown, Bishop of the Diocese of Orange, said the court hearing was a “bittersweet experience” for him.

“I have the deepest regret and sympathy for the Crystal Cathedral ministry,” he said. “I was moved, painfully so, by congregants who are worried about the future of their ministry.”

On the other hand, Brown said he is excited for the 1.2 million or so members of the Orange County Catholic community who will have an iconic building as their new center.

“We will get a renowned architect to renovate that building so it will be suitable for a Catholic place of worship,” he said. “But we have no intention to change the exterior of the building.”

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