Crystal Cathedral Ministries held its last service on Sunday at the famous glass building in Costa Mesa, California, before handing over to St Callistus Catholic Church.

The final benediction was delivered by the Reverend Robert A Schuller, who served as senior pastor of the cathedral until 2008.

St Callistus celebrated its new home with a Mass in the grounds of the 35-acre site, which has undergone a refurbishment prior to the changeover.

The Diocese of Orange bought the campus for $57.5 million after Crystal Cathedral Ministries was declared bankrupt. The Catholic Church has renamed the site Christ Cathedral.

Father Christopher Smith, rector at Christ Cathedral, said the campus would support outreach to the poor and marginalised, as well as the arts, music and dance.

Mass will be celebrated at the arboretum until alterations to the main cathedral have been finished some time in 2015.