tremendously. As of 2005, the membership numbered over 11,000 making the cathedral the largest church in the New England Region. Controversy The First Cathedral rents its facility to several local and regional organizations, including several local high schools including Windsor High School In Windsor, Connecticut, South Windsor High School in South Windsor, Connecticut, Enfield High School and Enrico Fermi High School in Enfield, Connecticut. In 2010, after the ACLU of Connecticut and Americans United informed the schools that continued use of the Bloomfield facility constituted a violation of the First Amendment's "establishment clause", which prohibits governmental entities from acting in a way that could be viewed as endorsing a religion. The high schools in Windsor, South Windsor, Enfield, East Hartford, and the Metropolitan Learning Center, a magnet school, subsequently decided against using First Cathedral. Same-sex marriage In 2003, Bailey and other ministers paid for an advertisement in the Hartford Courant affirming their opposition to same-sex marriage. This was part of a larger statement he and other ministers made which included the claims that, if same-sex couples are provided the same marriage rights as opposite-sex couples, ministers would be forced against their will to perform same-sex marriage ceremonies. Bailey is an adviser to the Family Institute of Connecticut. Ministries 2002, Churches Covered and Connected in Covenant (C4) a forum for churches of diverse denominations, ethnicity and geographic locations. 2004, Began a physical and spiritual health ministry. (The Good Life Wellness Center) 2006, Began a Christian catering service. (First Harvest) Multilingual/Translation Ministry Sign Language Ministry. Annual Multicultural month. Praises Of Zion, an award-winning Gospel Music choir. Annual events Covenant Conference Churches Covered and Connected in Covenant Conference (2001) Gospel explosion (2007) Pastoral anniversary celebration, March of every year Annual Christmas Production (1988) Ministry affiliations The First Cathedral is affiliated with several Ministries: Churches United in Global Mission - A ministry of Crystal Cathedral in Garden Grove, California. Connecticut Coalition of Churches Pastors in Covenant Churches Covered and Connected in Covenant<ref>[http://www.firstcathedral.org/pages.asp?pageid=20864 Churches Covered and Connected in Covenant official website] </ref> The Capital Region Conference of Churches'' Building In 1998, the ministry at the time known as The First Baptist Church of Hartford broke ground on its first custom house of worship, on a plot in Bloomfield, Connecticut. Funding for the construction was raised via stewardship campaigns over twelve years. After two years of construction the first phase of the facility was completed. In