Church of the Holy Family (Manhattan)

Last updated

Church of the Holy Family
Church of the Holy Family Manhattan 2023.jpg
Church of the Holy Family in 2023
Church of the Holy Family (Manhattan)
40°45′10″N73°58′7″W / 40.75278°N 73.96861°W / 40.75278; -73.96861
Address315 East 47th Street
Manhattan, New York City
CountryUnited States
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website www.churchholyfamily.org
History
Founder(s)Fr. Daniel De Nonno
Architecture
Architect(s) George J. Sole
Style Modern
Completedchurch: 1927
renovation: 1965
Administration
Archdiocese New York
Clergy
Pastor(s) Rev. Gerald E. Murray

The Church of the Holy Family, also known as the United Nations Parish, is a Roman Catholic parish church in the Archdiocese of New York, located at 315 East 47th Street in Manhattan, New York City. Originally established in 1924 for Italian-speaking immigrants, the church has adapted to serve the Turtle Bay neighborhood as well as the community associated with the nearby United Nations. In 1965 it became the first parish church in the Western Hemisphere to be visited by a reigning pope. [1]

Contents

History

Early 20th century

The origins of the church trace back to 1914, when the pastor of St. Boniface Church received permission to open St. Anthony's Chapel in the parish's school hall to provide special masses for Italian-speaking parishioners. In November 1924, Cardinal Patrick Hayes decided to create a separate parish to serve the growing number of Italian immigrants in the area, which amounted to nearly 9,000 members. Property at 315–323 East 47th Street—across the street from St. Boniface's Parochial School—was purchased for a new church. The new parish was headed by Father Daniel De Nonno, a priest at St. Boniface that had been closely involved with St. Anthony's Chapel. [2] [3] [4] On April 16, 1925, a dinner was held at the Biltmore Hotel in honor of Father De Nonno and raised $17,500 towards the construction of the new church. [5] Masses continued to be held at the St. Boniface parish hall until the new edifice was completed. The new church was dedicated in April 1927 and consisted of a brick stucco structure that formerly housed a brewery and a stable. [1] [3] [4] [6]

Soon after the church opened, a group of parishioners employed as chauffeurs and garage workers began a movement to establish a shrine to Saint Christopher, the patron saint of travelers. The shrine was dedicated on January 18, 1931, and included a statue of St. Christopher above a side altar. Father De Nonno also began a tradition of holding a "motorists' mass" on Sunday afternoons to allow chauffeurs to attend after they finished driving passengers to morning worship services. After the mass, the priests would come outside the church in their vestments and bless the automobiles parked on East 47th Street with a reliquary containing a bone of St. Christopher. [7] [8] [9] This practice caught the attention of New York State Governor Franklin D. Roosevelt, who sent Father De Nonno a letter expressing his appreciation in helping to draw awareness to the state's safety campaign to reduce motor vehicle accidents and deaths. [9] The church also became the headquarters of the confraternity of St. Christopher, of which Father De Nonno was the national director. [10]

A group of three paintings portraying the glorification of the Holy Family was dedicated on October 4, 1931, and blessed by Monsignor Michael J. Lavelle, rector of St. Patrick's Cathedral. The works of art, each measuring 25 by 12.5 feet (7.6 by 3.8 m), included a replica of Titian's Assumption of the Virgin and depictions of the Ascension of Christ and Transit of St. Joseph. They were painted directly on the walls of the church under the direction of Ignazio La Russa of the Art Academy of Palermo. [11] [12]

In 1937, Father De Nonno was transferred to St. Anthony's Church in the Wakefield section of the Bronx and the Church of the Holy Family became administered as a branch of St. Boniface, with Rev. George J. Zentgraf serving as the head of both parishes. [13]

Late 20th century to present

St. Boniface Church, along with its parochial school hall that originally held masses for the Holy Family parish, were demolished in 1950 to create a parkway approach leading to the United Nations along the south side of East 47th Street between First and Second avenues (now part of Dag Hammarskjöld Plaza). The parishioners of St. Boniface and its pastor, Father Zentgraf, were transferred to the Church of the Holy Family. [14] [15] To accommodate the loss of St. Boniface, the property adjacent to the Church of Holy Family at 325 East 47th Street was purchased in 1953 to construct a new church to serve the spiritual needs of the Turtle Bay neighborhood as well as the United Nations community. [1] [16] The new church would also complement similar religious centers being developed in the vicinity of the United Nations including the Church Center for the United Nations and the Sutton Place Synagogue. [17]

The 1965 renovation was designed by architect George J. Sole HolyFamilyInt1.jpg
The 1965 renovation was designed by architect George J. Sole

The Church of the Holy Family underwent renovations from 1962 to 1965. [18] Designed by New York architect George J. Sole, the project cost more than $2,225,000 and included a 142-foot (43 m) high aluminum bell tower and a large windowless façade made up of granite panels with crosses intended to blend in with the United Nations and other buildings in the surrounding area. The church complex also included a new rectory, an office and residence for the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, and the Pope John XXIII Pacem in Terris multilingual library. [19] [20] [21] Remodeling work to the church included alterations to the structure that had previously served as a brewery and stable, including the removal of two rows of cast-iron columns that ran through the center of the building. [6] The new church was dedicated on March 14, 1965, by Francis Cardinal Spellman. [1] [17]

During the first papal visit to the United States in October 1965, Pope Paul VI held an ecumenical meeting with Protestant, Eastern Orthodox and Jewish representatives at the Church of the Holy Family, which was the first visit by a reigning pope to a parish church in the Western Hemisphere. [1] [20] In 1979, Pope John Paul II also visited the church and extended a blessing after he had addressed the United Nations General Assembly. [18] Both of the papal visits to the parish are marked by plaques outside the church. [22]

In 1975, the office and residence of the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations were moved from the church to a townhouse on the Upper East Side that had been donated to the Archdiocese of New York by the heirs of former New York City Mayor Hugh J. Grant. [23] [24] In 1998, the Church of the Holy Family sold unused air rights to Donald Trump for $10 million, who used them along with air rights purchased from the Japan Society and other neighboring properties to develop the Trump World Tower at the east end of the block along First Avenue. [25] [26]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York</span> Archdiocese of the Catholic Church

The Archdiocese of New York is an ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church located in the State of New York. It encompasses the boroughs of Manhattan, the Bronx and Staten Island in New York City and the counties of Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland, Sullivan, Ulster, and Westchester. The Archdiocese of New York is the second-largest diocese in the United States by population, encompassing 296 parishes that serve around 2.8 million Catholics, in addition to hundreds of Catholic schools, hospitals and charities. The archdiocese also operates the well-known St. Joseph's Seminary, commonly referred to as Dunwoodie. The Archdiocese of New York is the metropolitan see of the ecclesiastical province of New York which includes the suffragan dioceses of Albany, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Ogdensburg, Rochester, Rockville Centre and Syracuse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Oakland</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in California, USA

The Diocese of Oakland is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in the San Francisco Bay Area of California in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archbishop of San Francisco.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Manchester</span> US diocese of the Catholic Church

The Diocese of Manchester is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church for New Hampshire in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archbishop of Boston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Fall River</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Massachusetts, United States

The Diocese of Fall River is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in southeastern Massachusetts in the United States. It is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Boston.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in Pennsylvania, USA

The Diocese of Scranton is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in northeastern Pennsylvania in the United States. It is a suffragan see of Archdiocese of Philadelphia, established on March 3, 1868.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Timothy M. Dolan</span> American cardinal of the Catholic Church

Timothy Michael Dolan is an American cardinal of the Catholic Church. He is the tenth and current archbishop of New York, having been appointed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Trenton</span> Latin Catholic ecclesiastical jurisdiction in New Jersey, USA

The Diocese of Trenton is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church that encompasses Burlington, Mercer, Monmouth, and Ocean counties in central New Jersey. The Diocese of Trenton is a suffragan diocese in the ecclesiastical province of the metropolitan Archdiocese of Newark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark</span> Catholic archdiocese in the United States

The Archdiocese of Newark is a Latin Church ecclesiastical jurisdiction or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in northeastern New Jersey, United States. Its ecclesiastic territory includes all of the Catholic parishes and schools in the New Jersey counties of Bergen, Union, Hudson and Essex.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Rosary Church (Manhattan)</span> Building in New York City, United States

The Church of the Holy Rosary was a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at 444 East 119th Street, East Harlem, Manhattan, New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Dearden</span>

John Francis Dearden was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Detroit from 1958 to 1980, and was created a cardinal in 1969. He previously served as Bishop of Pittsburgh from 1950 to 1958. During his tenure in Pittsburgh, Dearden earned the nickname "Iron John" for his stern manner of administration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of the Holy Family, Singapore</span> Church in Singapore

The Church of the Holy Family, also known as Holy Family Church and Katong Catholic Church, is a Roman Catholic church in the Archdiocese of Singapore. It is located at Chapel Road, off East Coast Road, and has one of the largest parish populations in the archdiocese.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Andrew's Catholic Church (Pasadena, California)</span> Church in California , USA

St. Andrew's Catholic Church is a Catholic church in Pasadena, California. Founded in 1886, it is the oldest Catholic parish in Pasadena and one of the oldest in Los Angeles County. Its Romanesque Revival campanile bell tower is visible for miles and is one of the landmarks of Pasadena. The interior of the current church, built in 1927, was modeled after the Basilica of Santa Sabina in Rome, while the façade was modeled after the church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin, down the hill and slightly upriver from Santa Sabina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Lucy Church (Manhattan)</span> Church in NY , United States

St. Lucy's Church is a former parish church of the Parish of St. Lucy, which operated under the authority of the Archdiocese of New York in the East Harlem section of the Borough of Manhattan in New York City. The parish address was 344 East 104th Street; the parochial school occupied 336 East 104th Street. The parish merged with St. Ann's Church in 2015, and Masses and other sacraments are no longer offered regularly at this church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Nicholas Kirche (New York City)</span> Demolished church in Manhattan, New York

St. Nicholas Kirche is a former Roman Catholic church located at 127 East Second Street between Avenue A and First Avenue in the Alphabet City/East Village neighborhood of Manhattan, New York City. The church, known in German as Deutsche Römisch-Katholische St. Nicholas Kirche, was the national parish for the local German-speaking population.

St. Stanislaus Kostka Church in Wilmington, Delaware, was founded November 23, 1913, as a Roman Catholic Church on the East Side of Wilmington to serve the needs of a growing Polish immigrant community. The Church was a part of the Diocese of Wilmington, until its closure on February 15, 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Boniface Church (New York City)</span> Demolished church in Manhattan, New York

The Church of St. Boniface, also known as the Little Country Church of Old Turtle Bay, is a former Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at 882 Second Avenue in Manhattan, New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holy Cross Church (Columbus, Ohio)</span> Historic church in Ohio, United States

Holy Cross Church is a historic church and home to an active parish in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Columbus located in the Discovery District neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio. The Gothic Revival building was completed in 1848 and is the oldest church in Columbus. The church, along with the school and rectory also on the property, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. The parish was suppressed and its territory absorbed by St. Joseph Cathedral in 2023, but remains open for public Masses.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Vito's Church (Mamaroneck, New York)</span> Church in Mamaroneck, New York

St. Vito's Church in Mamaroneck, New York is a Roman Catholic Church in the Latin rite parish of Most Holy Trinity-Saint Vito in the Archdiocese of New York. It is the parish church of the Parish of St. Vito and Most Holy Trinity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bruce Lewandowski</span>

Bruce Alan Lewandowski, CSsR is an American bishop of the Roman Catholic Church and a member of the Redemptorists. He has been serving as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Baltimore in Maryland, since 2020. He previously served in New York City, Saint Lucia, and Pennsylvania.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Parish History". Church of the Holy Family. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  2. ↑ "New Italian Parish". The New York Times. January 25, 1925. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  3. 1 2 Inventory of the Church Archives in New York City: Roman Catholic Church, Archdiocese of New York. New York: Historical Records Survey. 1941. p. 131. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  4. 1 2 "A Brief History of Holy Family Church – The United Nations Parish" (PDF). Church of the Holy Family. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  5. ↑ "$17,500 For A New Church". The New York Times. April 17, 1925. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  6. 1 2 O'Kane, Lawrence (May 30, 1965). "First a Brewery, Then a Stable, Building Is Now Artistic Church". The New York Times. ProQuest   116705015.
  7. ↑ "Priests Will Bless Autos at Novel Mass". The New York Times. February 6, 1931. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  8. ↑ "60 Autos Blessed at Catholic Ritual". The New York Times. February 9, 1931. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  9. 1 2 "Governor Commends Blessing of Autos". The New York Times. June 15, 1931. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  10. ↑ "Rev. Daniel De Nonno, Priest for 45 Years". The New York Times. June 14, 1940. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  11. ↑ "Lavelle to Bless Murals". The New York Times. October 4, 1931. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  12. ↑ "Church Murals Blessed". The New York Times. October 5, 1931. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  13. ↑ "Priest Is Transferred". The New York Times. December 29, 1936. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  14. ↑ Sheldon, Preston King (September 30, 1950). "Last Mass at St. Boniface's". The New York Times. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  15. ↑ "Church at U.N. Site Holds Last Service". The New York Times. October 2, 1950. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  16. ↑ "Church Buys Site on East 47th St". The New York Times. August 26, 1953. ProQuest   112623748.
  17. 1 2 Dugan, George (March 15, 1965). "Church at U.N. Is Consecrated". The New York Times. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  18. 1 2 Dunlap, David W. (2004). From Abyssinian to Zion: A Guide to Manhattan's Houses of Worship. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 100–101. ISBN   9780231125420.
  19. ↑ Greene, Bob (October 4, 1965). "Pope to Find Contrast in 2 Churches". Newsday. Retrieved April 29, 2023– via newspapers.com.
  20. 1 2 Dugan, George (October 5, 1965). "The Other Faiths". The New York Times. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  21. ↑ "About The Church". Church of the Holy Family. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  22. ↑ "Papal Visits Historical Marker". Historical Marker Database. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  23. ↑ Yee, Vivian (September 22, 2015). "Pope Francis, in New York, Will Live Like a Diplomat". The New York Times. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  24. ↑ "Holy See Mission Celebrates the 25th Anniversary of the Blessing of Its Headquarters". Permanent Observer Mission of the Holy See to the United Nations. October 9, 2020. Retrieved April 30, 2023.
  25. ↑ Bagli, Charles V. (October 16, 1998). "Trump Starts A New Tower Near the U.N." The New York Times. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
  26. ↑ Caulfield, Brian (January 21, 1999). "Air Rights". Catholic New York. Retrieved April 29, 2023.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.