St. James Catholic Church (Woodbridge, New Jersey)

Last updated
St. James Catholic Church
St. James Catholic Church (Woodbridge, New Jersey)
40°33′10″N74°16′55″W / 40.552882°N 74.281815°W / 40.552882; -74.281815
LocationWoodbridge, New Jersey
CountryUnited States
Denomination Roman Catholic
Website https://www.stjamesonline.org/
History
Founded1860 (1860)
Architecture
Completed1865
Administration
Diocese Metuchen

St. James Catholic Church is located in Woodbridge, New Jersey. With approximately 4,000 registered families, St. James is one of the largest parishes in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen.

History

St. James was founded in the village of Woodbridge in 1860, however Mass was celebrated in households. In 1865, the a small wooden chapel was built on the south side of Main Street. St. James soon became a mission of St. Mary's in Perth Amboy. In 1877, Woodbridge received its first resident pastor, Fr. Stephen Berteloni, who served until his death four years later.

Fr. James F. Devine was appointed the new pastor of St. James. Fr. Devine laid the cornerstone of a new wooden church in 1887. The church was consecrated in 1888, and on this occasion, the church was officially dedicated to St. James the Less. Fr. Devine also invited the Sisters of Mercy from Bordentown, New Jersey to start St. James School, which was to be housed in the old converted chapel.

In 1918, Fr. Richard Farrell was appointed pastor. Fr Farrell made many changes to St. James, the largest of which was the moving of the church building by tractor to Amboy Avenue.

Fr. Charles McCorristin was appointed pastor in 1937, and Monsignor in 1948. Due to the continuous growth of the parish, Msgr McCorristin oversaw an addition to the school as well as a campaign to build a new church.

After the death of Msgr McCorristin in 1966, Msgr. Maurice Griffin held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new church. The old church was demolished April 1968 and the new church was dedicated June 23, 1968. The new St. James was built of Pennsylvania limestone, in the Neo-Romanesque style. The church can seat 1,200 people, nearly twice that of the second parish church.

The second parish church, or the "Old Gray Church" was in disrepair. It was slated for demolition at the completion of the new church. At the Protest of many in the parish, the old church was torn down, with few artifacts spared.

Throughout the late 1980s and early 1990s the New Parish Building underwent many changes. The simple sanctuary was repainted and new fixtures introduced.

In 1995, St. James welcomed a community of Vietnamese immigrants into the parish. This community was active in the parish and ministers to about 400 families. The Vietnamese community was asked to move to a smaller church, Our Lady of Czestochowa Church in South Plainfield, NJ, because the amount of donations collected did not match the size of Saint James facilities.

The Parish community celebrated its 150th anniversary in 2010 and will celebrate its 160th in 2020.

Along with the Church, the parish operates an elementary school and cemetery.

Sources

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sacred Heart Cathedral (Davenport, Iowa)</span> Church in Iowa, United States

Sacred Heart Cathedral, located in Davenport, Iowa, United States, is a Catholic cathedral and a parish church in the Diocese of Davenport. The cathedral is located on a bluff overlooking the Mississippi River to the east of Downtown Davenport. It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as part of the Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Cathedral Complex. This designation includes the church building, rectory, and the former convent, which was torn down in 2012. The cathedral is adjacent to the Cork Hill Historic District, also on the National Register. Its location on Cork Hill, a section of the city settled by Irish immigrants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Malachy Roman Catholic Church</span> Church building in Manhattan, New York

St. Malachy Roman Catholic Church is a parish church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Manhattan on West 49th Street, between Broadway and Eighth Avenue. The parish has served the theatre community in a special way since 1920, and its parishioners have included many actors, such as Bob Hope and Gregory Peck.

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

The Diocese of Metuchen is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic church in the borough of Metuchen in New Jersey in the United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Agnes Cathedral (Rockville Centre, New York)</span> Church in New York, United States

St. Agnes Cathedral is a Roman Catholic Cathedral in Rockville Centre, New York, on Long Island. It is the seat of the Diocese of Rockville Centre. The Most Reverend John Oliver Barres is the ordinary bishop of the Diocese and pastor of the Cathedral parish. The Saint Agnes Cathedral School is on campus with the Cathedral.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola (Palm Beach, Florida)</span> Church in Florida, United States

The Cathedral of St. Ignatius Loyola is a bilingual (English/Spanish) Roman Catholic Cathedral situated in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida. It is the seat of the Diocese of Palm Beach, which administers to the counties of Palm Beach, Martin, Okeechobee, St. Lucie, and Indian River. The diocese oversees 49 individual parishes. The current bishop is Gerald Barbarito.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Peter the Apostle Church</span> Historic church in New Jersey, United States

Saint Peter the Apostle Church is a historic Roman Catholic church at 94 Somerset Street in New Brunswick, Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Mary's Church (South River, New Jersey)</span> Historic church in New Jersey, United States

St. Mary of Ostrabrama is a historic Polish Roman Catholic church at the junction of Jackson Street and Whitehead Avenue in South River, Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. John the Evangelist Church (Manhattan)</span> Building in New York, United States of America

The Church of St. John the Evangelist is a Roman Catholic parish church in the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at 355 East 55th Street at First Avenue, Manhattan, New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Raymond's Church (Bronx)</span> Building in New York, United States

St. Raymond's Church is a parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located at Castle Hill Avenue at Tremont Avenue, The Bronx, New York City. The parish was established in 1842. It was dedicated on the feast of St. Raymond Nonnatus, on August 31, 1845, thus getting its name. There is a stained glass window, on the right side if you are looking at the sanctuary, of St. Raymond Nonnatus and the men who took him hostage.

The Parish of St. Christopher and St. Sylvia is a parish under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Red Hook, Dutchess County, New York. In November 2014, the Archdiocese of New York announced that the parish of St. Sylvia's Church in Tivoli, New York would merge with St. Christopher's. Although it would remain a church which may be used on special occasions, Masses and the sacraments will no longer be celebrated on a regular weekly basis at St. Sylvia's as of August 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old St. Peter's Church (Poughkeepsie, New York)</span> Building in New York, United States of America

The Old Church of St. Peter is a Roman Catholic church established under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, New York in 1837. It is the second oldest Catholic Church on the Hudson and is considered the Mother Church of the Hudson Valley because from it all the parishes in Ulster and Dutchess counties were founded. The church is also referred to as Our Lady of Mount Carmel since 1965 when St. Peter's parish relocated to Hyde Park, New York and the parish of Our Lady of Mount Carmel church relocated to site.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Mary - St. Joseph Church (Poughkeepsie, New York)</span> Church in Poughkeepsie, New York

The Church of St. Mary is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, New York City. It was established as a parish in 1873. In November 2014, the Archdiocese announced that St. Joseph's Church on Lafayette Place would merge with St. Mary's. Although remaining a church which may be used on special occasions, Masses and the sacraments will no longer be celebrated on a regular weekly basis at St. Joseph's as of August 2015.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Church of Our Lady of Pity (Staten Island)</span> Building in New York, United States of America

The Church of Our Lady of Pity is a Roman Catholic parish church under the authority of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York, located in Staten Island, New York City. The church is located at 1616 Richmond Avenue, just south of the Staten Island Expressway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint Mary Church (Norwalk, Connecticut)</span> Church in Connecticut, United States

St. Mary is a Roman Catholic church in Norwalk, Connecticut, part of the Diocese of Bridgeport. As the first Catholic Church in Norwalk from which three other parishes developed, St. Mary's is considered the Mother Church of Norwalk.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Catherine of Siena Church (Trumbull, Connecticut)</span> Church in Connecticut, United States

St. Catherine of Siena is a Roman Catholic parish in Trumbull, Connecticut, part of the Diocese of Bridgeport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral (Metuchen, New Jersey)</span> Church in New Jersey, United States

St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral is a Catholic cathedral located in Metuchen, New Jersey, United States. It is the seat of the Diocese of Metuchen.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James F. Checchio</span> American Roman Catholic prelate

James Francis Checchio is an American prelate of the Roman Catholic church. Checchio served as rector of the Pontifical North American College in Rome from 2005 until 2016. On March 8, 2016, Pope Francis named Checchio as bishop of the Diocese of Metuchen in New Jersey to succeed Bishop Paul Bootkoski. Checchio was consecrated as bishop of Metuchen on May 3, 2016.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. John the Baptist Catholic Church (Silver Spring, Maryland)</span> Church building in Silver Spring, Maryland, US

Saint John the Baptist Catholic Church is a parish of the Roman Catholic Church in Silver Spring, Maryland, United States. It was established by the Archdiocese of Washington in 1960, and is dedicated to John the Baptist.

St Patrick's Church is a Roman Catholic church in the Beaumont Leys area of Leicester. The current church building dates from 1959, built to accommodate Leicester's growing Catholic population, although the parish was first created in 1854. The current church building is in the Romanesque style with three distinctive domes in the nave of the church. A stained glass window depicting St Patrick, the parish patron, stands at the back of the church. The current parish priest is Father Raphael Imoni, who arrived at St Patrick's in September 2018. The church serves St Patrick's Catholic Voluntary Academy and English Martyrs Catholic School.