Newarks Queen of Angels leaves legacy of praise and justice. Queen of Angels Roman Catholic Church is scheduled for demolition this week, 7/7/2014 – 7/12/2014. Below is a brief excerpt from nj concerning the legacy of this religious institution. blog.nj/njv_barry_carter/2013/02/newarks_queen_of_angels_leaves.html The parishioners walked slowly down the center aisle, taking it all in. Queen of Angels Parish, the first African-American Catholic Church in Newark, was a shell of itself. There were holes in the ceiling where plaster had fallen. The walls had cracks, the pews covered in dust. Shirley West looked around thinking about how this place was so much a part of her life. Her daughters went to school here, they were christened and married here. About 12 members like her came back recently for a final tour of the church, which was closed last year by the Newark Archdiocese. Queen of Angels couldn’t survive declining membership, but it leaves behind a glorious past as the beacon on the hill on Irvine Turner Boulevard. This is a church the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. visited, that held meetings for his Poor People’s Campaign. After he was killed, Queen of Angels organized a walk of 25,000 black and white people through the Central Ward to promote racial harmony. Known for its civil rights involvement, the parish attracted activists and entertainers, including jazz musician Mary Lou Williams. Built by German Catholics in 1861, the church was known as St. Peter’s before Queen of Angels took over. At its peak, it was so entrenched in the community that it had five priests leading Mass. Memories, lots of them. That’s all the members have left now. Oh boy, said West, making her way down the aisle. Makes you wanna cry. She did when three members began to sing a hymn of hope and strength. We’ve come this far by faith, they sang. Leaning on the Lord. It was cold, but that didn’t stop them. Slits of light pierced stained glass windows telling the story of Christ, their story as well. Trusting in his holy word, they continued, swaying side to side. He never failed us yet. Father James McConnell stood in the middle, just in front of the altar. The others joined in as McConnell, a priest of Irish descent, began preaching in the vein of black ministers. Come on, Church, he shouted. Cause God said where two or three are gathered in my name, that he would be here. This is what made Queen of Angels unique among other Catholic parishes. Its music and prayer, its lively worship and spontaneity. Cecilia Faulks said older women of the church, just before they received Communion, would throw their hands in the air, reaching as if they were receiving the body of Christ. When McConnell arrived in 1983, she said he further encouraged members to express themselves and give praise freely. And that’s what they did last month, but feeling so much more. They could see the good old days when the church was packed, when the school thrived. They had Broadway-style musicals, summer camp for kids. Families went on vacation together. The list is endless. Everybody loved each other here, said Francisca Osuji, flicking away tears. Now it feels like we’re homeless. Queen of Angels, once the center of black Catholic worship, started out on Academy Street in 1930. It burned down in 1958, but German Catholics invited them to worship in their sanctuary, a sanctuary that Queen of Angels would eventually occupy. The German parishioners moved to Irvington in 1962. As the years passed, members moved away, some, in part, because of the riots that scarred the city in 1967. With each decade, the church’s numbers dropped, until it could no longer sustain itself. When the ceiling fell last year, McConnell said it was time for them to go across town for service at St. Augustine Church. About 100 members went. Now, there’s 50 left, and they plan to continue their style of service with a separate Mass at the new parish. They miss their church, but Faulks said getting together for the final tour gave them closure. We got to talk about it,’’ she said. We got to say good-bye to this place.’’ Now they can move on singing the hymn that felt so right one last time. Oh, can’t turn around. We’ve come this far by faith.’’ blog.nj/njv_barry_carter/2013/02/newarks_queen_of_angels_leaves.html
Posted on: Sun, 06 Jul 2014 05:26:35 +0000
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