Father Thomas Betz, O.F.M. Cap.
St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, affectionately known as St. John’s, has been proclaiming the Good News of Jesus Christ in Center City for more than 187 years. People come to St. John’s to pray. People light candles and pray for their children who are in trouble, for their sick and dying loved ones, for their own health and happiness.
At St. John’s, people offered prayers for peace during the Civil War, two World Wars, and several other military conflicts. St. John’s is a church that welcomes people of all races and political ideologies as well as social and economic classes. We welcome all with the compassionate heart of Christ.
During the Great Depression, the St. John’s Bread Line fed 700 starving people every day and this tradition of service continued until 1963 when St. John’s Church founded St. John’s Hospice for a more organized outreach to those in Center City experiencing poverty and homelessness. Holy Redeemer Chinese Catholic church was founded as St. John’s missionary outreach to Philadelphia’s Chinese community. Holy Redeemer is now a thriving Catholic presence in the Chinese community with a church and school. This important ministry is still staffed by the friars of St. John’s today.
Mostly, St. John’s is a center of peace, prayer, and charity. All are welcome at St. John’s. St. John’s welcomes Center City residents and workers and visitors and tourists from every state and countries throughout the world. St. John’s is known as a place for confession of sins and forgiveness, for prayer and silence, and for rousing liturgies with magnificent music.
Many people remember making visits to St. John’s for prayer, Mass, or confessions when they came to Center City for shopping, doctor’s appointments, or work. St. John’s is famous for offering four Masses and 44 services each Ash Wednesday, as thousands line up every 15 minutes for prayer and ashes. Ash Wednesday is St. John’s busiest day of the year!
People come to St. John’s for weddings (about 80 each year). One quarter to one third of our Sunday congregation are made up of people in their 20s and 30s, including plenty of medical and university students. St. John’s has an active and dynamic young adult ministry. Young Catholics come to St. John’s and one day will go from St. John’s to raise families, pursue their careers and be leaders in Catholic parishes far and wide. St. John’s forms young Catholics who will one day bless the Catholic Church in many places and in many ways through their God-given gifts.
Center City tourism has grown in recent years, especially with the Convention Center. One third to one half of St. John’s Sunday congregation is made up of visitors to Philadelphia.
One of the priests from St. John’s is on call 24 hours a day, seven days per week, 365 days a year for Thomas Jefferson University Hospital. St. John’s priests visit patients who want to talk to a priest, receive communion or pray. Each year, our priests offer the anointing of the sick to nearly 1000 patients and make about 150 end of life urgent visits.
St. John’s is worth preserving.
St. John’s is a beautiful Church, old and often needing repairs, but overall well maintained. However, we now face a serious crisis, a predicament that threatens St. John’s survival.
Behind the church and friary, there is a courtyard. The courtyard is a small square concrete cover for the major mechanical systems for the church and friary which are under the courtyard. The courtyard is deteriorating and must be repaired or replaced. Some of these systems are old, very old, and need to be replaced soon. Here’s a summary of our capital needs:
- The courtyard is deteriorating.
- The electrical equipment is from the 1960s and in need of modernization.
- The air conditioning system for the upper church is old and past its predicted useful life.
The repairs are going to be extensive and require a lot of funds from a small parish! This money will have to come from St. John’s parishioners and friends. There is no outside source of funding.
We can raise the money we need! St. John’s loyal parishioners and friends love our Church and our ministry. We will come together and we preserve our Church.
We ask all of our parishioners and friends to make a sacrificial gift to assure the existence of St. John’s for the next quarter century. Donations can be sent to St. John Church, 21 S. 13th Street, Philadelphia, PA 19107.
Information for online donations can be found on our website at stjohnsphilly.org.
***
Father Thomas Betz, O.F.M. Cap., serves as pastor of St. John the Evangelist Church in Philadelphia.
Share this story