Parish history
Mission church
In 1883, the area that later became Culver City was known as La Ballona Valley. That year, a resident of the area donated land on Washington Boulevard for the construction of a new mission church in La Ballona Valley. [1] A small wood-frame church was built on the site, with a priest from St. Monica's in Santa Monica saying Mass at the church. [2]
Establishment of St. Augustine as a parish
In 1919, St. Augustine was formally established as a parish of the Monterey-Los Angeles Diocese. [1] In 1922, the church was expanded to seat 500, and in 1926 the parish opened a four-room school operated by six nuns from the Daughters of Mary and Joseph. [1]
John O'Donnell
John O'Donnell was the pastor at St. Augustine from 1923 to 1938. As the pastor of the church located across the street from MGM Studios, O'Donnell developed close ties with the entertainment business. He often acted as a technical advisor for MGM films, and the studio helped the parish raise funds with an annual barbecue. [1]
The parish built a new Franco-Gothic church in 1936 with a seating capacity of 700 on Washington Boulevard. The new church was dedicated in April 1937 in a ceremony presided over by Archbishop John Cantwell. The Los Angeles Times reported on the opening of the new church: "More than 2000 worshipers, including motion picture stars from the M-G-M studios across Washington Boulevard, attended the services. ... Leaning to the Gothic style of architecture, the building's interior is unique." [2] [3]
In November 1938, a controversy arose when Archbishop Cantwell announced plans to transfer O'Donnell to Immaculate Heart of Mary Church in Hollywood. Parishioners called a mass meeting to object to the transfer, signed petitions, and presented their objections to the archbishop. [4] Despite the protest, the transfer was not rescinded. In 1946, a wealthy parishioner left her $100,000 estate to O'Donnell, who the Los Angeles Times described as "the Irish priest who won the hearts of many a movie mogul during the 15 years he was pastor of Culver City's St. Augustine Catholic Church." [5] [6]
Msgr. McLaughlin and the new church
In 1949, Monsignor James McLaughlin became the pastor and led the effort to construct the large church that is the current home of the parish. The large Gothic church, with a seating capacity of 1,200, opened its doors at Christmas 1957 and was formally dedicated in June 1958. Well-known radio and television personality Bishop Fulton Sheen, who went to seminary with O'Donnell, traveled to Culver City to speak at the dedication. Following the dedication, the Los Angeles Times reported that the "new church is of 13th Century Gothic Design with 14,000 square feet." [7]
Recent years
From 1968 to 1973, (Charles) Kevin Keane was the pastor of St. Augustine, [8] before moving to become pastor of St. Charles Borromeo Church in North Hollywood, California.
Monsignor Ian Edward Holland was pastor at St. Augustine from 1983 to 1995, at which time he became pastor emeritus at the church. Msgr. Holland died in November 2002, and Cardinal Roger Mahony presided at his funeral Mass. [9] The parish has 3,000 member families. Chris Fagan is the current pastor.
October 2001 attack on church statues by Muslim fundamentalist
On October 28, 2001, just six weeks after the September 11, 2001 attacks by Al Qaeda, a self-styled Muslim fundamentalist from Egypt, Emad Ibrahim Saad, decapitated the Virgin Mary statue at the church, cut a hand off the church's statue of St. Rita, and cut off a bronze statue of Junípero Serra at the feet, taking the Serra statue with him and leaving it at the nearby King Fahd Mosque. Saad also scattered at the church Muslim magazines and fliers stating, "Allah is the only true God." Saad had appeared at the church the previous week, distributing Muslim leaflets before being asked to leave. On discovering the statue of Serra, an official at the mosque notified police. Saad was convicted in June 2002 under hate crime laws and sentenced to five years in prison. [10] [11]
James Francis Aloysius McIntyre was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Los Angeles from 1948 to 1970, and was created a cardinal in 1953. He was a highly successful builder of new parishes, churches, and schools. He was notable in Church politics, and his reputation remains highly controversial.
The Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, informally known as the COLA or the Los Angeles Cathedral, is the metropolitan cathedral of the Roman Catholic Church in Los Angeles, California, United States. It opened in 2002 and serves as the mother church for the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, as well as the seat of Archbishop José Horacio Gómez.
John Joseph Cantwell was an Irish-born American prelate of the Catholic Church. He led the Archdiocese of Los Angeles from 1917 until his death in 1947, becoming its first archbishop in 1936. Cantwell was critical of the U.S. film industry and helped found the National Legion of Decency.
The Cathedral of Saint Mary is the seat of the archbishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Miami. The cathedral is named for Mary, mother of Jesus, and is located at 7525 N.W. 2nd Avenue, Miami, Florida, United States. Since June 2010, Archbishop Thomas Gerard Wenski has served as the archbishop of Miami, Rev. Christopher Marino is the cathedral's rector.
St. John O'Sullivan was a Catholic priest who personally undertook the restoration of the old Mission San Juan Capistrano in California.
Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church & School is a Catholic church and elementary school located in Encino, Los Angeles, California, at the corner of Ventura Boulevard and White Oak. The parish operates the Our Lady of Grace Elementary School. Crespi Carmelite High School is also adjacent to the parish.
St. Elisabeth of Hungary Church and School, originally known as St. Elizabeth Church and School, is a Catholic church and elementary school located in Van Nuys, Los Angeles, California. The church and school are named in honor of Elizabeth of Hungary.
St. Mel is a Catholic church and elementary school located on Ventura Boulevard in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles, California. St. Mel's parish was established in 1955. As of February 2020, Father Steve Davoren was the pastor, and Mary Beth Lutz was the principal of the school.
Holy Family Catholic Church is a Catholic parish located on Elk Avenue in Glendale, California that consists of a Catholic church and a grade school. It formerly hosted an all-girls high school. Founded in 1907, it is the oldest parish in Glendale.
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.
Joseph Thomas McGucken was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles (1941–1955), coadjutor bishop and bishop of the Diocese of Sacramento (1955–1962) and archbishop of the Archdiocese of San Francisco (1962–1977).
Padre Serra Parish is a large Catholic church in Camarillo, California, established in 1988 after the beatification of Father Junípero Serra. For its first seven years, Padre Serra's parish celebrated Mass in a room at St. John's Seminary. In July 1995, a modern 16,300-square foot church, without pews or kneelers, and with a centrally located altar, was opened. As of 1995, the parish had more than 5,000 members. In 2007, Padre Serra Church became the home parish of the first married Catholic priest in the Los Angeles Archdiocese.
St. William Parish is a Catholic church founded in January 1920 in the Philadelphia Pennsylvania, neighborhood of Lawncrest. The parish originally served 70 households. The Parish elementary school was opened in 1924.
John Joseph McCort was an American prelate of the Catholic Church. He served as Bishop of Altoona from 1920 until his death in 1936.
St. Cecilia's Catholic Church is a Roman Catholic parish in the Our Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. The church is located at 4230 South Normandie Avenue in the South Los Angeles section of Los Angeles, California USA. The Lombard Romanesque church was built in 1927.
St. Timothy Catholic Church is a Catholic parish of the Los Angeles Archdiocese, in hbd Our Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region. The church is located at 10425 West Pico Boulevard in the Rancho Park neighborhood on the westside of Los Angeles, California. Its Spanish Renaissance style church was built in 1949.
St. Basil Catholic Church is a Catholic Church parish of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles. Serving the archdiocese's Our Lady of the Angels Pastoral Region, the Roman Rite parish is located at 3611 Wilshire Boulevard in the Wilshire district of Los Angeles, California. The parish church building was built from 1967 to 1969 and dedicated in 1969. In 1969 and 1970, the parish was the site of pickets and demonstrations by Chicano Movement protesters who objected to the archdiocese's expenditure of substantial funds on construction of the new parish rather than on the poor and social justice programs.
William Robert Johnson was an American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as bishop of the Diocese of Orange in California from 1976 until his death in 1986. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California from 1971 to 1976.
Saint Stephen Martyr Catholic Church is a Catholic parish church located at 2436 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., in the United States. The parish was founded on August 4, 1867, and the first church building consecrated and used for worship on December 27, 1868. This brick structure closed on July 15, 1959, and the current new building was consecrated and first used for worship on June 11, 1961. The church was a favorite of President John F. Kennedy.
Joseph Vincent Brennan is a prelate of the Catholic Church who has been serving as bishop of the Latin Church Diocese of Fresno in California since 2019. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles in California from 2015 to 2019.
