St. Francis de Sales Roman Catholic Church (Philadelphia)
Encyclopedia
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Francis de Sales
Francis de Sales was Bishop of Geneva and is a Roman Catholic saint. He worked to convert Protestants back to Catholicism, and was an accomplished preacher...
Roman Catholic Church, founded in 1890, is a Catholic church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
at 4625 Springfield Avenue in University City
University City, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
University City is the easternmost region of West Philadelphia.The University of Pennsylvania has long been the dominant institution in the area and was instrumental in coining the name University City as part of a 1950s urban-renewal effort...
, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well as Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties. The diocese was...
. Its cornerstone laid in 1907, the Guastavino
Guastavino tile
Guastavino tile is the "Tile Arch System" patented in the US in 1885 by Valencian architect and builder Rafael Guastavino...
tiled dome of the de Sales parish has been an icon in its neighborhood. The de Sales parish is a large church was designed by Philadelphia architect Henry D. Dagit, built in the Byzantine Revival style
Neo-Byzantine architecture
The Byzantine Revival was an architectural revival movement, most frequently seen in religious, institutional and public buildings. It emerged in 1840s in Western Europe and peaked in the last quarter of 19th century in the Russian Empire; an isolated Neo-Byzantine school was active in Yugoslavia...
and modeled after Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
's Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia
Hagia Sophia is a former Orthodox patriarchal basilica, later a mosque, and now a museum in Istanbul, Turkey...
, incorporating elements of the Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts movement
Arts and Crafts was an international design philosophy that originated in England and flourished between 1860 and 1910 , continuing its influence until the 1930s...
which was at its peak when the church was built.
Congregation
Irish American
Irish Americans are citizens of the United States who can trace their ancestry to Ireland. A total of 36,278,332 Americans—estimated at 11.9% of the total population—reported Irish ancestry in the 2008 American Community Survey conducted by the U.S. Census Bureau...
families – who eventually left for the suburbs to the Vietnamese refugee
Vietnamese American
A Vietnamese American is an American of Vietnamese descent. They make up about half of all overseas Vietnamese and are the fourth-largest Asian American group....
families who still meet at the parish, though they too have moved on. The parish currently serves a large African immigrant community, a homegrown African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
constituency, and the faculty, staff and students of the University of Pennsylvania
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania is a private, Ivy League university located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Penn is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States,Penn is the fourth-oldest using the founding dates claimed by each institution...
, Drexel University
Drexel University
Drexel University is a private research university with the main campus located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA. It was founded in 1891 by Anthony J. Drexel, a noted financier and philanthropist. Drexel offers 70 full-time undergraduate programs and accelerated degrees...
, and the University of the Sciences
University of the Sciences in Philadelphia
University of the Sciences , officially known as University of the Sciences in Philadelphia , located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in pharmacy and a variety of other health-related disciplines.-History:The history of the University of the Sciences...
. The parish is known for its choir, elementary school and the church organ.
The parish has been the anchor for the community, and is one reason that the portion of Cedar Park
Cedar Park, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Cedar Park is a neighborhood located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was built as a streetcar suburb for Center City between 1850 and 1910. It is a racially and ethnically diverse part of the city, with much of the historic architecture preserved...
in which it sits did not decay as much as other parts of West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia
West Philadelphia, nicknamed West Philly, is a section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though there is no official definition of its boundaries, it is generally considered to reach from the western shore of the Schuylkill River, to City Line Avenue to the northwest, Cobbs Creek to the southwest, and...
.
Architecture
The church is home to one of the largest pipe organOrgan (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
s in the Delaware Valley
Delaware Valley
The Delaware Valley is a term used to refer to the valley where the Delaware River flows, along with the surrounding communities. This includes the metropolitan area centered on the city of Philadelphia. Such educational institutions as Delaware Valley Regional High School in Alexandria Township...
, a four-manual, 6,000-plus pipe organ used by Eugene Ormandy
Eugene Ormandy
Eugene Ormandy was a Hungarian-born conductor and violinist.-Early life:Born Jenő Blau in Budapest, Hungary, Ormandy began studying violin at the Royal National Hungarian Academy of Music at the age of five...
and the Philadelphia Orchestra
Philadelphia Orchestra
The Philadelphia Orchestra is a symphony orchestra based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in the United States. One of the "Big Five" American orchestras, it was founded in 1900...
for their 1980 recording of Camille Saint-Saëns
Camille Saint-Saëns
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French Late-Romantic composer, organist, conductor, and pianist. He is known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse macabre, Samson and Delilah, Piano Concerto No. 2, Cello Concerto No. 1, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso, and his Symphony...
' Organ Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 3 (Saint-Saëns)
The Symphony No. 3 in C minor, Op. 78, was completed by Camille Saint-Saëns in 1886 at what was probably the artistic zenith of his career. It is also popularly known as the "Organ Symphony", even though it is not a true symphony for organ, but simply an orchestral symphony where two sections out...
. It is one of the best examples
of French organ
Organ repertoire
The organ repertoire consists of music written for the organ. Because it is one of the oldest musical instruments in existence, written organ repertoire spans a time period almost as long as that of written music itself. The organ's solo repertoire is among the largest for any musical instrument...
in the United States.
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Partners for Sacred Places
Partners for Sacred Places is a United States national, non-sectarian, non-profit organization whose mission is the support of older and historic sacred places by helping congregations and local communities sustain and actively use the structures.Founded in 1989, Partners has helped several...
, a Philadelphia-area interfaith group that works to support the preservation of churches and other houses of worship, is currently working with the parish to restore the dome, the stained-glass
Stained glass
The term stained glass can refer to coloured glass as a material or to works produced from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant buildings...
windows and the doors, as well as complete exterior cement work and other repairs and preventive maintenance.
"St. Francis de Sales is architecturally and culturally so beloved... the congregation is serving the community in so many wonderful ways, and they have done so much for immigrants."
The tile arch system, designed by the Raphael Guastavino Co. in 1911, is one of the best examples of the company's work in Philadelphia.
In 1968 as a result of liturgical changes made by the Second Vatican Council, the church hired the architects Robert Venturi and John Rauch to renovate the altar space to create a free standing altar. The alterations that Venturi and Rauch added included five parts: a new altar, a celebrant's chair, a suspended cathode light and the elevation of the sanctuary floor. These renovations were in an entirely modern style, clashing with the Byzantine architecture of the interior. The renovations were removed almost immediately at the request of the parishioners, who reacted negatively to the renovations.
Notable parishioners
- Peter BoylePeter BoylePeter Lawrence Boyle, Jr. was an American actor, best known for his role as Frank Barone on the sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond, and as a comical monster in Mel Brooks' film spoof Young Frankenstein ....
- Joseph A. Pepe, Bishop of Las Vegas
James Whalen, Democratic Politician from New Jersey, State Senator, Ex-mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey
Dominic Irrera, Professional Stand Up Comic and Actor
See also
- Archdiocese of PhiladelphiaRoman Catholic Archdiocese of PhiladelphiaThe Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well as Bucks, Chester, Delaware, and Montgomery counties. The diocese was...
- Cedar ParkCedar Park, Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaCedar Park is a neighborhood located in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was built as a streetcar suburb for Center City between 1850 and 1910. It is a racially and ethnically diverse part of the city, with much of the historic architecture preserved...
- Spruce HillSpruce Hill, Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaSpruce Hill is a neighborhood in the West Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is between 40th and 46th streets, and it stretches from Market Street south to Woodland Avenue. It has a population of over 16,000. It was built as a streetcar suburb for Center City between 1850 and...