|
The Formation of a New
Parish
After many years of petition and
prayers, Our Lady of Loreto Parish was established by Bishop John J. Wright.
Prior to and at the time of the redevelopment of the Lower Hill District
of the city, the Brookline area experienced an influx of new people forced
to leave their homes which were razed to make way for the Civic Arena and
Chatham Center.
The people petitioned the Bishop to
establish a new parish for them because of the distance to Resurrection
Church and the overwhelming size of the Mother Parish. Hence, a new parish
was established on May 27, 1959, during the reign of His Holiness, Pope John
XXIII. The new Parish was the fourth and final offspring
of Resurrection Church, the other three being St. Norbert's, St. Bernard's
and St. Pius X.
Our Lady of Loreto was the first
parish in the Diocese of Pittsburgh to be established by His Excellency,
Most Reverend John J. Wright. The title and patroness of the parish were
the Bishop's personal choice. Loreto, a town on the Adriatic Coast of
Italy, is the site of a magnificent Shrine to Our Lady. Over a million
pilgrims, including many sick and handicapped, visit the shrine every
year.
The Title and The
Patroness of the Parish
The title "Our Lady of Loreto" is
derived from the Holy House of Loreto, a small town on the eastern coast
of Italy. Loreto is the site of what, until the rise of Lourdes, was the
most famous Marian shrine of the world outside of Palestine.
The Holy House, according to a
centuries old tradition, is believed to be either the original house or
a replica of the house where Our Lady was born, where the Angel Gabriel
announced to her that she was to be the Mother of God, and in which Christ
was conceived of Mary and spent His early childhood. The tradition relates
that in May, 1291, the house was transported by angels from its original
site in Nazareth to Tersato, near Fiume, in Dalmatia: in 1294 it was again
removed by angels and carried across the Adriatic Sea to Italy, and
eventually came to rest at Loreto.
The Holy House, which now stands
within a vast domed basilica, is a rectangular structure of rough stone
and brick, measuring about 30 feet by 13 feet inside. The exterior walls
have been encased in white marble beautifully carved into ornate figures
and designs. Inside, an altar stands at one end beneath the statue of Our
Lady of Loreto. The statue represents Our Lady holding the Christ-child,
both dark-skinned and both swathed in a stiff formal robe richly
ornamented.
Historical criticism of recent
times has indicated that the Holy House of Loreto may be only a replica
of the original house of Our Lady at Nazareth. The tradition of the
removal of the house from Nazareth to Loreto by angels is not a matter
of faith. Nonetheless, Our Lady's shrine at Loreto is, like Lourdes, a
centuries-old place of great pilgrimage and of cures and miracles of
grace. Our Lady has shown particular favor to her shrine at Loreto and
Almighty God has enriched it with His extraordinary graces and miracluous
cures granted through the intercession of His Blessed Mother. Over a
million persons visit the shrine each year.
The Early Days
Reverend Arthur L. Garbin was named
first pastor of Our Lady of Loreto. Msgr. Carl P. Hensler, S.T.D., Dean of
this area, conducted the first ceremony of installation of Father Garbin.
Prior to this assignment, Father Garbin had been Director of Saint Anthony
School for the mentally retarded in Oakmont, Pennsylvania. Father was
responsible, through his warmth and friendliness, for the family spirit of
Loreto which is still evident in the parish. Because of his concern for
education, the school was the number one priority.
Stemming from the belief that each
child should learn at his or her own pace, a non-graded system of education
was introduced, which has proven successful in every facet of teaching. Our
Lady of Loreto School opened its doors to serve as a pilot program for this
type of education on the elementary level. Over the years, Loreto evolved
into one of the finest academic and athletic programs in the diocese, perhaps
even in the state. Whether below average, average, or above average, each
child received equal attention and was placed in a group commensurate with
his or her individual abilites.
Prior to the erection of the
church-school building, the Sisters of Charity of Elizabeth Seton High School
graciously made available the auditorium and facilities of their school for
church purposes and for religion classes and meetings. Sunday masses were
offered for the first time on May 31, 1959, the feast of the Queenship of
Mary. The following Sunday, the assistance of Reverend Marcellus Fuller,
O.F.M. Capuchin, Superintendent of Toner Institute, Brookline, enabled the
parish to schedule four masses every Sunday in the auditorium. Marriages
were celebrated in the school chapel or at Resurrection Church. Funerals
were conducted at Resurrection.
A Ladies Guild, an Ushers Club and
an Altar Boy Society were organized within a month. The Guild assumed
responsibilty for converting the auditorium for church services each weekend.
In the following months the house at 1901 Pioneer Avenue was purchased for a
rectory.
The Guild sponsored a "Shower for the
Parish House." Due to the prayers and sacrifices of the parishioners, the
rectory was paid off less than a year after the purchase.
In August, 1959, Bishop Wright
authorized the parish to engage an architect to prepare plans for a
church-school building. At the time, the parish had 335 children enrolled
at Resurrection school and 100 public school pupils attending religion
classes conducted at Elizabeth Seton by the Sisters of Charity.
A 1960 year-end report indicated there
were 800 families, including over 600 school age children, in the parish.
There had been 48 baptisms and eight marriages.
The first choir, consisting of men
only, was started in September of 1959, Walter Kenna was choir director and
Mrs. James Sands was the organist.
Also in September, plans were made to
begin training men and women of the parish to serve as helpers and teachers for
religion classes; hence the CCD program began. The CCD is a parish society in
which the laity, under the guidance of the clergy, play leading roles in
learning, living and teaching Christian Doctrine. The original classes had
enrolled 100 grade school children.
On March 16, 1961, Bishop John J. Wright
administered the sacrament of Confirmation to 66 children and three adults in
the temporary church. These confirmandi were the first to be confirmed from the
parish. May 16, 1961 marked the "First" First Communion, with a class
consisting of 65 children. Plans were made to make it a memorable one, despite
the temporary church set-up in Elizabeth Seton's auditorium.
Church and School Construction
Begins
Preliminary plans for the building
received approval from the Diocesan Building Commission in June of 1960. The
architects, Casimir J. Pelligrini Associates of Pittsburgh, were authorized
to proceed with the working plans. Unfortunately, test borings conducted on
the site revealed some serious problems. The site was not solid ground but a
tremendous mass of fill, dumped there over the years. There were signs of
shifting of the fill in addition to drainage and grading
problems.
Another major problem discovered was
the necessity of running the site's sanitary and storm sewers through the
woodland to Timberland Avenue, near Route 51. The sewer lines at Pioneer
Avenue were higher than the grade levels at the construction site. The delays
continued until the spring of 1961, during which solutions to the problems
were finally decided. As a result, groundbreaking ceremonies had to be
postponed.
Groundbreaking for the school and
temporary church took place in Trinity Sunday, May 28, 1961. Reverend Oliver
D. Keefer, pastor of the Church of the Resurrection, Father Arthur Garbin,
and representatives of all church committees participated in the traditional
ceremonies. Some two hundred jubilant members of the parish attended the
groundbreaking on a beautiful sunny afternoon. Excavation and construction
began the following day.
With the new building nearing completion,
the blessing and the laying of the cornerstone took place on September 24, 1961.
Monsignor Carl P. Hensler, Dean, and Monsignor Jacob C. Shinar, along with
Father Arthur Garbin, conducted the ceremonies. This was surely a historical
event, marking the erection of the first building in the parish. All parish
families were asked to send a medal or a family memento to be sealed in the
cornerstone.
<View construction photos
of Our Lady of Loreto Church/School>
<Get a real Bird's Eye View of Our Lady of
Loreto Parish - 1962>
Selection of Sisters
for the New School
On March 27, 1962, Bishop John J. Wright
announced his selection of Sisters for the new school: the Apostles of the Sacred
Heart of Jesus, who were founded by Mother Clelia Merloni, whose cause for
beatification had already begun. The congregation numbers two thousand world wide,
with 256 in this country.
Their ministry in the United States
includes teaching, parish ministry, special education and nursing. World wide
they engage in social work as well as the administration of hospitals and
orphanages. They serve in Italy, Switzerland, the United States, Brazil and
Argentina.
In Pennsylvania, the Sisters staffed
schools in Pittsburgh, Butler, New Castle and Connellsville, as well as St.
Anthony's School for Exceptional Children in Oakmont and a similar school,
"Clelian Heights," in Greensburg. Prior to his election to the Papacy, Pope
John XXIII was the Cardinal Protector of this order.
At Loreto, the first Sisters to serve
were Sister M. Estelle, Principal and Superior, Sister M. Irene and Sister M.
Francine. The Sisters were assisted by two lay instructors, Mrs. Walter Padlo
and Mrs. John Kinevy.
Dedication Day
Dedication Day of Our Lady of Loreto
church-school building finally arrived. On August 22, 1962, the feast of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary, the ceremonies were held. The celebrant and homilist
was the Most Reverend John J. Wright. Attendance had to be restricted due to
the limited facilities.
The Statue of Our Lady of Loreto,
which had just arrived from Italy two hours before the ceremony, stood in the
lobby and welcomed all. It was a glorious and joyous day. The entire cost
of the new building was $541,650, of which the parish assumed a debt of
$400,000.
From this day to the renovation of the
present church the Sunday masses were held in the gym. The daily masses,
weddings and funerals were held in the Chapel, which is presently the social
hall.
A Permanent Church
In the hope of terminating the temporary
church facilities, plans for a permanent church were initiated by the pastor and
church committee in early 1966. Many proposals were considered, pending
improvement of the financial status of the parish.
As time went on, the financial capabilities
of the parish grew steadily. But before plans could start, Father Garbin was
reassigned by Bishop Wright to Saint Michael's in Butler,
Pennsylvania.
The new pastor assigned to Our Lady of
Loreto was Father Raymond A. Cercone, who came from Saint Lawrence in Hillsvale,
Pennsylvania, where he had built a church and rectory. He had also spearheaded
the building fund campaign for Saint Catherine's in Beechivew where he had been
an assistant.
After several months, Father Cercone
started the improvements on the church grounds. The roadway from the rectory and
convent was undertaken. A Debt Reduction Campaign was started in May of 1968. The
first Sunday of every month was Debt Reduction Sunday. His dream was to have a
new church.
In October, 1968, the parish committee
obtained the services of the architectural firm of Belli and Belli to plan
converting the multi-purpose hall into a permanent church. In March, 1969, a new
building fund program was initiated.
J.J. McGaffin, who had built the
church-school building, was again contracted to convert the multi-purpose hall
into a permanent church. Again, parishioners attended Sunday masses at Elizabeth
Seton from May to August 3, 1969, when mass was again held at Our Lady of
Loreto.
In May of 1969, Cardinal Wright departed
for Rome to his new assignment. Bishop Vincent Leonard, who was installed as the
ninth bishop of Pittsburgh, dedicated the new church on October 25, 1969. The
mass of dedication was followed by a dinner and dance at Webster Hall.
The Loreto Community Continues
To Grow
In September, 1972, Father Cercone was
reassigned and a new spiritual director, Monsignor James Shanahan was assigned to
the church. A priest dedicated to the spiritual uplifting of his people, Monsignor
Shanahan mingled with the children and parishioners and quickly became a father
and friend to all. His homilies were inspiring and hard to forget, yet all felt
comfortable in his presence as if he were "one of the boys."
Monsignor Shanahan, along with a group of
totally committed parishioners, started a bingo, which provided great support for
the Church in reducing the debt. Unfortunately for the parishioners and the
church, Father Shanahan passed away suddenly on November 15, 1978.
Father Thomas O'Neill, the assistant
pastor, took over all the duties of the parish and kept the congregation going
during that period of great loss. On June 18, 1979, Father O'Neill was assigned
to St. Luke's parish in Carnegie.
In September of 1977, Our Lady of Loreto
acquired a parish social service co-ordinator, Brother Ted Smith, a Christian
Brother. A learned man who spoke several languages, Brother Ted spent many hours
visiting the sick, comforting those in need and sometimes entertaining them with
his pantomimes.
On December 17, 1978, the parish received
a new pastor, Father Joseph Grosko, formerly a Navy Chaplain and a native of
Braddock, Pennsylvania. Father Grosko, who had a special love for the older
parishioners, quickly set up the Loreto Pioneers. This is an organization
dedicated to the advancement of the spiritual and social needs of the senior
citizens of the parish. Their first meeting was held on October 4, 1979. Father
Grosko also founded a weekly "Dialogue and Donuts" gathering, the very first
"Family Day" celebration and the first carnival, which was held on July 20,
1981.
Due to the committment and hard work of
the carnival committees and all the parishioners involved, the yearly endeavor
succeeded in building parish community beyond compare. The original parish
council was inaugurated under the guidance of Father Grosko. Also, the church
grounds were enhanced with many beautiful trees and shrubs.
Father Grosko, who always had a strong
desire to serve in the missions, left the parish on August 24, 1981, for an
assignment in the Phillippines. Even though his stay was short, he touched the
congregation in a very special way.
Bishop Vincent Leonard assigned Reverend
Charles J. Chatt as the next pastor of Our Lady of Loreto on August 24, 1981.
Father Chatt was experienced in pastoral duties of the diocese and familiar to
the responsibilities of Catholic Education. Through his homilies, Father Chatt
showed a unique wisdom in bringing the true meaning of Christ's message, as it
applies in the modern world.
The 25th Anniversary
Celebration and Dedications
Father Chatt brought in the first
In-Parish Weekend Restreats and undertook the task of renovating the church
for the upcoming 25th Anniversary Celebration.
On May 25, 1984, a new, handcarved
crucifix, pulpit and altar, donated in memory of Monsignor James Shanahan, were
installed. On Sunday, May 27, on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the
establishment of the parish, the new altar, which represents Christ with the
family of Loreto gathered around Him, and the new lecturn were dedicated by
Father Chatt in virtue of his faculties as Dean of South Pittsburgh.
The beautiful liturgy was followed with
a reunion in the Social Hall, which was attended by many members of Monsignor
Shanahan's family, former parishioners and present members of Our Lady of
Loreto. |
