Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception

...merging of Byzantine and Romanesque styles.[3] The change in design had a number of reasons, which the architect, Charles Maginnis, stated arose out of a desire for a “distinctively American” church that would allow for a blending of the architecture in Washington D.C.[4] Another practical reason was the contemporary building

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Catholics in WWII

...which Philadelphia had the second most with 51. As the war continued that number would increase to 68, unfortunately eight of those Philadelphia priests would die in the war, the most of any U.S. diocese.[7] Meyer Photo: Margherita Camp Chapel From his priests, Dougherty would often receive monthly progress reports

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Parish and School Closing

...es. This almost forced Roman Catholic High School for Boys, the first diocesan high school in the country to close in 1988. While it was able to recover, other institutions would not be so lucky. Halvey_654J_021 Halvey_654J_022 Halvey_667J_004 Halvey_667J_009 Halvey_667J_013 Halvey_677J_024   Parishes Merge In 1992, Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua announced

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Archbishop Ryan

...s also active in expanding ministry work for the marginalized. He opened a number of institutions, including, St. Joseph’s House for Homeless Industrious Boys and the Philadelphia Protectory for Boys (now St. Gabriel’s Hall) in 1888 and 1895, respectively.[10] Ryan was also active in labor relations, working on a number

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