St. James Catholic Church
Encyclopedia
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
.
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 Monseignor 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.
In 1995, St. James welcomed a community of Vietnamese immigrants into the parish.
Woodbridge Township, New Jersey
-Communities:Many distinct communities exist within Woodbridge Township. Several of these communities have their own ZIP codes, and many are listed by the United States Census Bureau as census-designated places, but they are all unincorporated areas and neighborhoods within the Township that,...
. With approximately 4,000 registered families, St. James is one of the largest parishes in the Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen
Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen is a Roman Catholic diocese in New Jersey, centered in the borough of Metuchen. It was erected on November 19, 1981, from the territory of the Diocese of Trenton....
.
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
The Sisters of Mercy
The Sisters of Mercy are an English rock band that formed in 1980. After achieving early underground fame in UK, the band had their commercial breakthrough in mid-1980s and sustained it until the early 1990s, when they stopped releasing new recorded output in protest against their record company...
from Bordentown, New Jersey
Bordentown, New Jersey
Bordentown City is in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city population was 3,924. Bordentown is located at the confluence of the Delaware River, Blacks Creek and Crosswicks Creek...
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 Monseignor 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.
In 1995, St. James welcomed a community of Vietnamese immigrants into the parish.
Sources
- Michael Krull, The Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen, Editions de Signe, Strasbourg, FranceStrasbourgStrasbourg is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking,...
, 2005 - St. James Church, Custombook, Inc., 1970