Our Lady of Mt. Carmel (Bayonne, New Jersey) explained

Archdiocese:Archdiocese of Newark
Location:Bayonne, New Jersey
Architectural Type:Church
Country:United States
Functional Status:Active
Denomination:Roman Catholic
Status:Church
Dedication:Our Lady of Mount Carmel
Church Name:Our Lady of Mt. Carmel
Spire Quantity:2
Parish:St. John Paul II Parish of Bayonne, NJ
Dedicated Date:1899
Style:Romanesque Revival architecture
Founded Date:1898
Years Built:1909-1910
Pushpin Map:USA New Jersey Hudson County
Coordinates:40.6624°N -74.1173°W
Architect:Robert J. Reiley,
Gustave E. Steinback

Our Lady of Mt. Carmel (Polish: Matki Boskiej Szkaplerznej) is a Roman Catholic church in Bayonne, New Jersey.[1] The name is a dedication to the Blessed Virgin Mary in her role as patroness of the Carmelite Order, hence the name Our Lady of Mount Carmel. Founded by Polish immigrants in 1898,[2] it grew to become one of the largest Polish congregation in the United States.[3] Part of the Archdiocese of Newark, the parish merged with two others to become the Parish of St. John Paul II in 2016.[4]

Early history

In the decades following Bayonne's incorporation in 1866, the city's population rapidly expanded from around 2,000 to over 40,000 by 1900 due to rapid industrialization. The opening of plants in Bayonne by Standard Oil Company, Tide Water Oil Company, Babcock & Wilcox Tubular Boiler Company and many others attracted a large immigrant labor force, including Polish immigrants.[5]

Following a years-long effort by early Polish immigrants in Bayonne to form a parish of their own, the church of Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Bayonne was officially incorporated on January 25, 1898 by Bishop Winand Michael Wigger.[6] [7] [8] These efforts were supported by Rev. Boleslaus Kwiatkowski, Pastor of St. Anthony of Padua Parish in neighboring Jersey City, NJ, the first Polish parish established in New Jersey. Rev. Alexis John Iwanów, a priest of nineteen years, arrived in Bayonne in August 1899 and was officially appointed Pastor of Mt. Carmel Parish on November 9, 1899. The parish initially held religious services in the basement chapel of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church, the first Catholic parish established in Bayonne. At the time of Mt. Carmel's founding, the other Roman Catholic parishes in Bayonne were St. Mary's (1861) St. Vincent's (1894), St. Henry's (German, 1889) and St. Joseph's (Slovak).

The Parish secured land on East 22nd Street where the Polish parishioners built a simple wooden chapel by hand (after working in the local industries).[9] [10] The church was dedicated on Christmas Day of 1899 by Rev. I. P. Whelan, Pastor of St. Mary's, and the first Mass was held by Rev. Iwanów.[11]

Parish schism

On the Saturday before Palm Sunday 1900, a delegation of parishioners confronted Rev. Iwanów and under the threatened use of firearms they carried with them, demanded control of the parish. With the pastor banished, some 300 parishioners occupied the church, inspired by fears that the church property, funded and built by parishioners, was legally owned by the Bishop, and not the parishioners.[12] A new pastor, Rev. Sigismund Świder, was appointed following Rev. Iwanów's departure. With the church occupied, Rev. Świder oversaw the construction of a new church nearby.

On April 16, 1901, a Bill of Complaint was filed in the Chancery Division of the New Jersey Superior Court contesting the legal ownership of the original church property. The decree of October 26, 1903 recognized the legality of the claim of Our Lady of Mount Carmel parish to the church property, and the church was returned to the Roman Catholic congregation. The original wooden church was converted into the first school building.[13] [14] A segment of the parishioners broke away from the parish and founded Heart of Jesus Church, part of the Polish National Catholic Church.

20th century history

Membership within the church exceeded predictions and the need for a third church building resulted in the construction of the current building in 1909.[15] [16] In 1910 a second school was constructed from a part of the former church building.[17] A year later Paul Peter Rhode, the first Polish bishop in the United States, came from Chicago to bless the new church.[18] Twice the church caught on fire, on December 12, 1912,[19] and on May 30, 1915,[20] The amortization of debt in 1917 preceded its consecration by John J. O'Connor (bishop of Newark) in that year.[21]

During World War II, nearly 3,000 parishioners served in the U.S. armed forces, and 103 gave their lives.[22]

In 1958, a complete restoration of the property took place and in following years a parking lot, parish center, and garages were added.[23] Reverend Thaddeus Zaorski served as pastor from 1968-1989.[24] In 1983, Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School was brought up to safety regulation standards.[25]

21st century history

The entire complex of the parish is still standing, having been little altered since construction. This includes the church (1909), school building (1921), convent, parish center, as well as the parish office/rectory (1930).[15] The complex is the basis for the Mount Carmel Historic District established in 1991.[26]

In 2010 the church commissioned a statue of Pope John Paul II, the first Polish pope.[3]

Due to declining numbers of congregants within Bayonne, in 2016 Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish merged with two other parishes (Our Lady of the Assumption[27] [28] and St. Michael & St. Joseph) into the present-day St. John Paul II Parish.[29] The church is administered by the Salvatorian Fathers.[30]

In 2019, the school and convent were put up for sale.[31]

List of pastors

See also

Sources

  1. Web site: Żywicki . Robert S. . 85th Anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish . Polish American Liturgical Center . 1983 .
  2. Web site: Ciccarino . Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope: the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey . Éditions Du Signe. 2003 . Strasbourg, France . .

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish - Liturgical Center. liturgicalcenter.org.
  2. Web site: Chronology of Parishes | Archdiocese of Newark. www.rcan.org. October 28, 2014 .
  3. Web site: Bayonne's Mt. Carmel church erects statue of Pope John Paul II. The. Jersey. April 8, 2010. nj.
  4. Web site: Lin, Jonathan. Five Bayonne Catholic parishes to be consolidated into two, says Archdiocese of Newark. The Jersey Journal. 2015-09-29. 2020-06-24.
  5. Web site: Bayonne Today. 2020-11-20. www.ahgp.org.
  6. Sinclair, Gladys Mellor. Bayonne Old and New : The City of Diversified Industry. New York : Maranatha Publishers, 1940. Page 148, "The Sacred Heart Polish National Catholic Church was a wooden structure near what is now 17 East 22nd Street in 1989..."
  7. Web site: Żywicki . Robert S. . 85th Anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish . Polish American Liturgical Center . November 1, 2019 . The Podbielski father and son team wrote about the early Polish immigrants in Bayonne and how they gathered together to form a parish on January 25, 1898..
  8. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003, page 114. "Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Bayonne, ... since its inauguration in 1898 ..."
  9. Sinclair, Gladys Mellor. Bayonne Old and New : The City of Diversified Industry. New York : Maranatha Publishers, 1940. Page 148, "...when it was built by a group of Polish immigrants shortly after their arrival in Bayonne. The chapel was built by the hands of parishioners after working hours in the local industries."
  10. Żywicki, Robert S. “85th Anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish.” Liturgical Center, Liturgical Center, https://liturgicalcenter.org/media/parish_pdf/NEW/new-10.1.pdf . "There they built a simple, wooden church in which they could pray and sing their treasured hymns in their native tongue. The first Mass was celebrated in Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church on Christmas Day, 1899 by the Rev. Alexis Iwanów, who was appointed our first pastor the previous month."
  11. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003.Page 114, "...since its inauguration in 1898 and dedication on Christmas 1899."
  12. Book: Kowalski, W., Romelczyk, R. M., Mages, I., & Żywicki, R. S.. 85th anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish, Bayonne, New Jersey: 1898-1983. publisher not identified. 1983. Bayonne.
  13. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "Two years later, when the demand for larger quarters for the growing parish continued, Msgr. Swider built the second brick church and first rectory. "
  14. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "With the completion of the second church in 1903, the original wooden structure was converted to a parish school."
  15. Web site: Jersey City, Hudson River Waterfront Transportation Corridor Improvements, Hudson-Bergen Light Rail Transit System (HBLRTS), Hudson County, Bergen County: Environmental Impact Statement . Federal Transit Administration . 1996 . 3–63 . November 1, 2019.
  16. Żywicki, Robert S. “85th Anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish.” Liturgical Center, Liturgical Center, https://liturgicalcenter.org/media/parish_pdf/NEW/new-10.1.pdf . "It was what still remains as our lower parish hall. When the number of parishioners exceeded the size of the second church building, a third was constructed beginning in 1909."
  17. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "Finally in 1910, the present church was erected and the second church became the second school..."
  18. Żywicki, Robert S. “85th Anniversary of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish.” Liturgical Center, Liturgical Center, https://liturgicalcenter.org/media/parish_pdf/NEW/new-10.1.pdf ., " A little more than a year later, it was finished and Bishop Paul Rhode, the first Polish bishop in America, came from Chicago to bless the new building. In 1917, the mortgage having been amortized, the present church was consecrated by Bishop John J. O'Connor of Newark. The second church then became Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School, leaving the first wooden church to become the parish hall. Father Świder decided to build again and by 1921 Mt. Carmel had a new school building, which through great care, constant maintenance and major renovations is still serving our children today."
  19. Sinclair, Gladys Mellor. Bayonne Old and New : The City of Diversified Industry. New York : Maranatha Publishers, 1940. Page 148, "During the pastorate of Rev. Anthony Korona the church building was destroyed by fire—December 12, 1912."
  20. Sinclair, Gladys Mellor. Bayonne Old and New : The City of Diversified Industry. New York : Maranatha Publishers, 1940. Page 148, "Misfortune again visited the church on May 30, 1915... The house of worship was destroyed by fire."
  21. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "Bishiop John J. O'Connor, Bishiop of Newark, dedicated the third building October 16, 1917."
  22. Book: Wytrwal, Joseph. Behold! the Polish-Americans. Endurance Press. 1977. ((0-910552-01-7)) . 246557889. 77-84476. Detroit, Michigan. 392.
  23. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "A complete restoration took place in 1958. In subsequent years, a parking lot, a parish center, and garage were added."
  24. Web site: Our Lady of Czestochowa Roman Catholic Church . New Jersey City University. November 1, 2019 . In August 1989, Rev. Niedzwiecki retired as pastor after twenty years of service and Rev. Eugene Kasper arrived in October to take his place. Rev. Kasper had been ordained in 1959 and since that time he had served Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Bayonne, one of the largest Polish national parishes in the country for thirty years of his priesthood..
  25. Ciccarino, Christopher. Seeds of Faith, Branches of Hope : the Archdiocese of Newark, New Jersey. Strasbourg, France : Éditions Du Signe, 2003. Page 114, "After 1983, the school was reconstructed to accommodate safety regulations."
  26. Web site: New Jersey and National Registers of Historic Places - Hudson County . New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection - Historic Preservation Office . 2016-01-19.
  27. Web site: Here's what's planned for one of Bayonne's former Catholic churches. Journal. Teri West The Jersey. 2019-09-26. nj. en. 2020-05-12.
  28. Web site: Bayonne parish celebrates last Mass before closing permanently. Journal. Jonathan Lin The Jersey. 2016-01-01. nj. en. 2020-05-12.
  29. Web site: Lin . Johnathon. Five Bayonne Catholic Parishes to Be Consolidated into Two, Says Archdiocese of Newark. The Jersey Journal. September 29, 2015. November 1, 2019. On Jan. 1, Our Lady of the Assumption, St. Michael & St. Joseph and Our Lady of Mt. Carmel will merge to become St. John Paul II, while St. Mary Star of the Sea and St. Andrew will merge to become Blessed Miriam Teresa Demjanovich..
  30. Web site: Home Page. 2020-11-20. johnpaul2parish.
  31. Web site: Our Lady of Mount Carmel Convent - Bayonne - UNDER CONTRACT . www.rcan.org . November 1, 2019.
  32. News: Msgr. Anthony Tralka. August 30, 1970. The New York Times.

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