The Marian Gardens of Christ Cathedral is a unique rosary garden, a walk-through experience for the faithful that invites peaceful prayer, reflection and education about the life of the Virgin Mary and Jesus. These gardens are one of a kind in the United States, invoking an interesting medley where the traditional and the classic meet the modern and the abstract. Each of the four gardens is devoted to one category of the Mysteries of the Rosary: Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful and Glorious. Within each area are five pieces of sacred art, which were hand-crafted in the Peruvian Andes by skilled artisans from Artesanos Don Bosco, a Catholic Church-affiliated nonprofit. They were done in mosaic, fusion glass, copper and bronze panels, and botticino limestone panels. Another design detail is embedded in the walking paths: pieces of crushed glass in colors that exemplify the Biblical stories being told. For example, in Sorrowful Mysteries, red and burgundy glass is present — colors that represent the pool of blood from Jesus’ sacrifice for all mankind.

Near the Marian Gardens is a re-creation of the Garden of Gethsemane. Like the real place in Israel, Christ Cathedral’s Garden of Gethsemane contains mature olive trees. It contains a walking path, benches, a water feature, and a statue of Jesus praying.

The Marian Gardens and Garden of Gethsemane are among the many sites to see on the 34-acre Christ Cathedral campus (formerly known as the Crystal Cathedral).