At
275 years, Old St. Joseph’s is thriving
By Lou Baldwin
Special to The CS&T
PHILADELPHIA — Before there could be a diocese of Philadelphia there
had to be a church of Philadelphia. This year, as the diocese celebrates
its 200th year, the first Catholic church within the city limits, Old
St. Joseph’s, celebrates 275 years.
In 1733, when Jesuit Father Joseph Greaton built his chapel near Fourth
and Walnuts Streets, it was the only public place of Catholic worship
in the entire British Empire.
St. Joseph’s was permitted because the Quaker founders of Philadelphia
were tolerant people who believed their charter gave them the right to
grant complete freedom of worship. It was not a large building, but sufficient;
Father Greaton’s congregation numbered only about 50 souls.
Father Greaton’s tiny chapel no longer exists. It was razed and
replaced by new churches in 1757 and 1839.
Throughout this anniversary year, Old St. Joseph’s will have many
celebrations, including a March 15 St. Joseph’s Day celebration
with a parish dinner in its Barbelin Hall. The facility is named for Jesuit
Father Felix Barbelin, a distinguished 19th-century pastor whose “Classical
Academy” was the forerunner of both St. Joseph’s University
and St. Joseph’s Preparatory School.
Social outreach was always at the core of St. Joseph’s: As noted
in material prepared by parish historian Bobby Burke, it was here that
Acadian exiles from Nova Scotia found refuge in the colonial era; it was
here Philadelphia’s first St. Vincent de Paul Society was established;
it was through Father Barbelin’s initiative that St. Joseph’s
Hospital, Philadelphia’s first Catholic hospital, was established;
it was at St. Joseph’s that Masses for Philadelphia’s African
Americans were first celebrated. St. Katharine Drexel’s sister Elizabeth
was one of the Sunday School teachers.
The grand old parish saw good times and bad. By the 1930s, its people
were among the poorest of the poor in Philadelphia. In the 1950s, they
were forced out of Society Hill through the application of eminent domain
and the area became gentrified.
Nevertheless, concern for people with needs remains very important, according
to Jesuit Father Mark F. Horak, St. Joseph’s pastor. Mostly this
is through three distinct ministries: visitation to the hospitalized sick
and the homebound; support for education in poor neighborhoods; and homeless
outreach.
St. Joseph’s provides tuition assistance to children at Gesu School
and Hope Partnership for Education in North Philadelphia, and to children
in Sacred Heart Parish, Camden. It provides a hot lunch for a group of
40 to 60, consisting mostly of men, three days a week and two evening
meals a week.
“About 20 percent of our total revenue goes to social justice,”
Father Horak estimated.
Many of the homeless who are ministered to voluntarily stay after the
meal for a session of conversation, prayer and faith sharing. This year
one of the homeless men will be received into the Church through the RCIA
program.
“We very much promote spirituality, especially Ignatian spirituality,”
Father Horak said.
In spite of venerable years, St. Joseph’s attracts a relatively
young congregation especially to its Sunday evening Mass, and adult education
programs are well attended. St. Joseph’s remains alive and thriving.
Lou Baldwin is a member of St. Leo Parish and a freelance writer.