Archdiocese to Close 7 Schools

The hatchet men at the Archdiocese of Philadelphia are at it again, as news broke today that seven parish schools will be closed at the end of the current school year.

WPVI: Phila. Archdiocese to close 7 schools in June

Three of the closings are actually in the burbs, so only four really concern us:

St. Anne: Not a shocker, since it took a miracle fundraising campaign to keep the place open for this current school year. Your decision to pull out of the merger with the Fishtown parish schools isn't looking too good now, is it?

Strangely, according to the article, students will be accommodated at Our Lady of Port Richmond, but there's no mention of Visitation BVM. Too good for the other side of Aramingo?

St. Hugh of Cluny: If this continued existence of St. Veronica has always surprised me, this parish has doubly done so. Bad location, no architectural value to speak of. It's amazing this place is still around, let alone supported a parish school for so long. The aforementioned Veronica, their neighbor to the west, will at least get some benefit from this.

St. Cyprian: Refugees of Cobbs Creek can't catch a break, can they? First Transfiguration of Our Lord closes and gets demolished, and now even their school is gone. Cedar Avenue has to be looking pretty lonely these days.

Ascension of Our Lord: Now this is just sad. The homeless parish may not have a church, but at least they still had a parish school. Now they've got nothing. Absolutely, literally nothing. It's like kicking a puppy. If you had any doubts that this parish will be the next to get the axe, they've officially been erased. This place is already dead--they just don't know it yet.

I could sit here and wax poetic, blaming the Archdiocese and dissecting rising tuition costs and so on and blah, blah, blah, but by now this is an old story. We all know the notes, and we shouldn't be surprised when it keeps ending the same way. It is what it is, and it's a sad commentary on our priorities.

Get used to not being wanted, kids. The Archdiocese isn't done pissing on your dreams just yet.

St. Mark - Frankford

Two churches in two months? 2011's looking pretty good so far. The latest is presented for your viewing pleasure:

St. Mark Frankford | The Philadelphia Church Project Review

In case you're wondering about that image, no, the Project doesn't have a time machine. I somehow forgot to take a main exterior shot, so I stole this off the internet. Credit to whomever it really belongs to. Date is unknown, but the absence of the El puts it around the early 1900s.

Mailbag 22: The Best E-Mail Ever

Sorry for the absence this past week. The Project was battling a nasty strep infection and 102 degree fever, and felt well enough to do very little, none of it church-related. Anyhow, while my temperature has returned to normal, someone else's is skyrocketing.

From the mailbag comes the following anonymous e-mail, sans subject line:

how can anybody let that happen i went there church and school there i think the archdiorse has a lot of gut,s a chruch like that go down it has history and it GOD house they make sick

Your guess is as good as mine.

On one hand, this could be clever commentary from someone who's so mad at the "Archdiorse" that he (she?) has been rendered a gibbering madman. Or, perhaps more likely, was a gibbering madman to begin with. Either way, I laughed, so--well done, mystery maniac.

Cathedral Basilica of Ss. Peter and Paul

A birthday treat for y'all. 2011 is now officially underway!

Cathedral Basilica of Ss. Peter and Paul

Props, by the way, to my camera. I often mock it as a piece of quaint point-and-shoot technology, but in a difficult place to shoot, it performed far better than I ever expected it to.

The Project Turns Four

Happy Fourth Birthday, Project!

That's right! On this exact date four long years ago, the Project was born. Since then we've crisscrossed the city and its environs, encountering buildings, people and situations that made us laugh, weep, dance, clap, ponder, despair and more.

Who knew that chronicling Philly's religious architecture would be such an adventure?

Besides patting myself on the back, I also want to, as usual, take this opportunity to thank you, the readers, e-mailers, fans, malcontents and archenemies, for joining along on the ride. It's chaotic and not always pretty or even timely, but your support means everything. It's the reason this thing is still going four years later, and I can never, ever thank you enough for that.

I don't know what 2011 will bring, but it's good to know I'll be in some great company.

Now, who brought the cake?

Mailbag 21: Too Hard on the Main Line?

A big surprise is coming soon, possibly even this week. In the meantime, Project reader Kathy doesn't think I was fair to Our Mother of Good Counsel (OMGC), the birthplace of the infamous Hot Girl Principle.

Did you talk to the pastor there? I doubt it. I am from upstate NY and have known Fr. Jim for more than 50 years. (He is about to retire). Anyway, during my most recent visit, I (from a blue-collar neighborhood) was a little nervous about the reputation of the town, NOT the pastor.

My friend and I experienced a pleasant mass and the people were all very warm and friendly. They went out of their way to make us feel welcome (we were there for a celebration). We could not have enjoyed our visit more! And that is NOT true of many parishes these days. I would encourage you to go back and talk to a different priest or members of the parish council.

"Alice"

Ok, maybe her name is Alice. I dunno, the e-mail sender had a different name.

Anyway, Alice or Kathy or whoever you are:

If I had spoken to the pastor, I would have mentioned it. Especially since Father Dennis McGowan left such a bad taste in my mouth. It really doesn't matter, though. Pastor or not, no member of a parish's clergy or staff should show visitors the complete apathy and disinterest I was shown. It's inexcusable. And if it occurred under the watch of your beloved Fr. Jim, then he's just as culpable.

As for the people, I didn't spend much time one-on-one with them. But having worshiped there and seen them in action, my impression was quite the opposite of yours. You enjoyed it? Great. Good for you. But know that there are at least a dozen church experiences that surpass the whitebread crap that OMGC has to offer. If you want to see what real mass and real community is, let me know and I'll point you in their direction.

But go back to OMGC? Ha ha. No. Just no. I'd rather get lost in South Philly.