Nicholas Russo

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Certainly Father Russo is a stern teacher. He never speaks a word to a soul except as he speaks to all in class. He sits at the rostrum looking like some great medieval scholar — great black eyes, a lean sallow face, and a look which turns you into stone if you don't happen to know your lesson. [9]

Russo professed his fourth vow on August 15, 1884. [1]

President of Boston College

The president of Boston College, Thomas H. Stack, died suddenly on August 30, 1887, after just 17 days. There was not enough time to formally select a new rector, a lengthy process, before the start of classes in autumn. Therefore, Russo was appointed the vice-rector and seventh president to temporarily administer the institution. [12] [13] During his presidency, Russo was also the pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception in the South End of Boston. [14] His tenure was uneventful, [13] and after less than one year, Russo was succeeded by Robert J. Fulton on July 4, 1888. [15]

Ministry in New York City

Following his presidency, Russo became the procurator at St. Francis Xavier Church in New York City. He also was appointed "moderator of the cases of conscience" for the Archdiocese of New York, a position he held for the rest of his life. In 1889, Russo became a professor of philosophy at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It was there in 1889 that he published his third book, on ethics, completing his Jesuit philosophical education. [5]

Russo returned to New York City, serving as operarius [lower-alpha 2] at the Church of St. Lawrence O'Toole (later known as the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola). [5] He also wrote speeches and papers for the archbishop of New York, Michael Corrigan. [17] On February 19, 1891, Russo presided over a conference at St. Patrick's Cathedral of all priests of the archdiocese, which discussed canon law, dogmatic theology, and moral theology. [18]

Church of Our Lady of Loreto

Manhattan's Little Italy c. 1900 NYC Mulberry Street 3g04637u.jpg
Manhattan's Little Italy c. 1900

As hundreds of thousands of Italian immigrants arrived in New York City, many settled in Little Italy in Lower Manhattan. [19] The Jesuit Superior General urged Archbishop Corrigan to tend to their spiritual needs, [20] and Corrigan enlisted the aid of various religious orders to establish churches for Italians throughout Manhattan. For the Lower East Side, he selected the Jesuits, [19] and the Jesuit provincial superior, Thomas J. Campbell, selected Russo to lead the effort. [2]

With that, Russo gave up a successful career in academia and spent the rest of his life ministering to poor Italian immigrants in New York City, [11] who, he wrote, "worked like slaves" for subsistence wages. [21] As one biographer noted, "It must have been, humanly speaking, no small sacrifice...for he had held high positions in Boston and New York and his work had lain almost entirely among the better instructed and wealthy." [19] [22]

When Russo arrived in New York, tensions between Italian immigrants and the city's predominantly Irish clergy had been building for some time, [19] and Italians faced discrimination from local pastors. [23] At St. Patrick's Old Cathedral, the pastor, John F. Kearney, created an Italian sub-congregation in 1882 that was almost entirely segregated from the rest of the parish. Italians were relegated to the basement to celebrate Mass and other sacraments, and Kearney eventually expelled the Italians from the church entirely. [24] Russo first visited St. Patrick's in 1889, and Kearney refused to permit him to celebrate Mass in the main church for "reasons which a priest should feel ashamed to give," according to Russo. [17] While Russo initially believed that the primary obstacle to the Italians' spiritual wellbeing was their own "indifference" to religion, after five years ministering to them, he concluded that neglect by clergy charged with their pastoral care was the foremost problem. [17] As a result, Protestants actively worked to convert Italian immigrants. [20]

Russo and another Italian Jesuit, Aloysius Romano, physically converted a rented barroom on Elizabeth Street it into a chapel holding about 150 people. They built an altar and two confessionals, cleaned the walls, painted, and named the chapel Missione Italiana della Madonna di Loreto. The first Mass was held in the chapel on August 16, 1891, the Feast of San Rocco, with Russo delivering the sermon in Italian and the provincial superior being the main celebrant. [25] Tensions persisted, with Russo writing to Archbishop Corrigan about Kearney's continued hostility. [26] With his congregation shrinking, Kearney reopened St. Patrick's to Italians, who became the majority of parishioners, depleting funds from Russo's indebted church. [27]

Russo's parish soon outgrew its makeshift chapel, and in 1892, he purchased two tenement buildings across the street. [28] After renovations, the new church was dedicated by Corrigan on September 27 under the name Our Lady of Loretto. [29] The church, located at 303 and 305 Elizabeth Street, contained three altars. [30] It accommodated 500 people seated and an additional 200 people standing. [31]

Russo divided the basement of the church into classrooms, opening a school for 200 children. Due to poor conditions in the basement, after two months, he purchased two houses adjoining the church for $35,000 [32] (equivalent to approximately $1.01 million in 2021), [33] and renovated them for another $8,000. A new parochial school for girls opened in October 1895 and one for boys opened in 1898. By 1895, the schools enrolled 700 students. [22] Russo also started two weekend clubs for younger and older boys and a sodality devoted to the Sacred Heart. [34] Eventually, a third Jesuit from Sicily became a curate at the church. [35]

On Easter in 1902, Russo's health deteriorated and he was taken to St. Vincent's Hospital, where it was found he had pneumonia with complications. [36] He died on April 1, 1902, by which time the church drew 3,000 parishioners each Sunday. [37] While it was intended that a Neapolitan Jesuit working in the Rocky Mountains replace Russo at Our Lady of Loreto, he was succeeded by William H. Walsh. [27] Russo's funeral was held at Our Lady of Loreto, with the Mass celebrated by the provincial superior and the absolution of the dead prayed by Archbishop Corrigan. [36]

Published works

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Several sources list his birthplace as Ascoli Satriano, in the Apulia region of southern Italy. [1] [2]
  2. ↑ An operarius is a Jesuit who works as a priest away from his Jesuit community. [16]

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References

Citations

  1. 1 2 3 Mendizàbal 1972 , p. 183
  2. 1 2 Brown 1987 , p. 198
  3. 1 2 3 Woodstock Letters 1902 , p. 281
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Dunigan 1947 , p. 143
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Woodstock Letters 1902 , p. 282
  6. ↑ Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990 , p. 90
  7. 1 2 The Stylus 1902 , p. 164
  8. ↑ Dunigan 1947 , p. 158
  9. 1 2 3 Dunigan 1947 , p. 128
  10. ↑ Dunigan 1947 , pp. 143–144
  11. 1 2 The Stylus 1902 , p. 165
  12. ↑ Dunigan 1947 , pp. 142–143
  13. 1 2 Donovan, Dunigan & FitzGerald 1990 , p. 89
  14. ↑ Lapomarda 1977 , p. 211
  15. ↑ Dunigan 1947 , p. 144
  16. ↑ Gramatowski 2013, p. 20
  17. 1 2 3 Brown 1987 , p. 199
  18. ↑ "The Catholic Conference: Dr. M'Glynn's Expectations Said to be Groundless". The New York Times . February 8, 1891. p. 9.
  19. 1 2 3 4 McNamara 2014 , p. 78
  20. 1 2 Russo 1896 , p. 136
  21. ↑ McNamara 2014 , pp. 78–79
  22. 1 2 Woodstock Letters 1902 , p. 283
  23. ↑ McNamara 2014 , p. 79
  24. ↑ Brown 1987 , pp. 195–196
  25. ↑ Russo 1896 , p. 137
  26. ↑ Brown 1987 , p. 200
  27. 1 2 Brown 1987 , p. 201
  28. ↑ Russo 1896 , pp. 139–140
  29. ↑ Russo 1896 , p. 140
  30. ↑ "For Italians to Worship in: Dedication of the New Church of the Madonna di Loretto". The New York Times . September 26, 1892. p. 9.
  31. ↑ "A New Italian Church: It is the Outcome of the Italian Mission Recently Established". The New York Times . September 18, 1892. p. 17.
  32. ↑ Russo 1896 , p. 141
  33. ↑ Johnston, Louis; Williamson, Samuel H. (2023). "What Was the U.S. GDP Then?". MeasuringWorth. Retrieved January 1, 2023. United States Gross Domestic Product deflator figures follow the Measuring Worth series.
  34. ↑ Woodstock Letters 1902 , p. 284
  35. ↑ Russo 1896 , p. 142
  36. 1 2 Woodstock Letters 1902 , p. 285
  37. ↑ McNamara 2014 , p. 80

Sources

The Reverend
Nicholas Russo
SJ
Nicholas Russo SJ cropped.jpg
Russo c. 1888
7th President of Boston College
In office
1887–1888
Academic offices
Preceded by7th President of Boston College
1887–1888		Succeeded by
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by8th Pastor of the Church of the Immaculate Conception
1887–1888		Succeeded by
New office1st Pastor of the Church of Our Lady of Loreto
1891–1902		Succeeded by
William H. Walsh
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