St. Peter Claver

...1906.[12] Eventually, the parish became the mother church for the growing number of Black Catholic churches in the city. The church would continue to play an important part in the lives of Black Catholics until its closure in 1985.[13] Despite the church’s closure, the spirit of the parish lived on

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Philadelphia’s Third Archbishop

...parish schools were erected, especially ethnic parishes for the increasing number of southern Italian and Eastern European immigrants. Three Italian parishes in the city alone, including St. Nicholas of Tolentine, Our Lady of Pompeii, and Our Lady of Consolation, were established during Prendergast’s brief tenure.   St. Nicholas of Tolentine

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Cardinal Dougherty and His Golden Jubilee

...pal Stadium (Later JFK Stadium) in South Philadelphia on June 2, 1940 to witness Cardinal Dougherty’s Golden Jubilee Mass.[1] The event was the largest gathering of Catholics in the city since 300,000 attended the 1926 Solemn Pontifical Mass for the Sesquicentennial of the Declaration of Independence.[2] Dennis Joseph Dougherty was

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The Church and Labor

...tates. Archbishop Patrick Ryan was active in labor relations, working on a number of occasions as a mediator between management and labor unions to bring about peace resolutions. In a 1953 Labor Day speech, John Cardinal O’Hara rejoiced in the work that had been done to restore the dignity of

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