kids encyclopedia robot

Saints Peter and Paul Church, San Francisco facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts
Quick facts for kids
Saints Peter and Paul Church
Saints Peter and Paul Church.JPG
Saints Peter and Paul Church
Religion
Affiliation Catholic
District Archdiocese of San Francisco
Province Archdiocese of San Francisco
Ecclesiastical or organizational status Parish
Leadership Archbishop of San Francisco
Location
Location
Saints Peter and Paul Church, San Francisco is located in San Francisco
Saints Peter and Paul Church, San Francisco
Location in San Francisco
Architecture
Completed 1924
Direction of façade South
Saints Peter and Paul Church, San Francisco
Traditional Chinese 聖伯多祿聖保祿教堂
Simplified Chinese 圣伯多禄圣保禄教堂
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin Guānhuà Shèngbǎoluó Shèngbǐde Jiàotáng

Saints Peter and Paul Church is a Catholic church. It is located in San Francisco's North Beach neighborhood. You can find it at 666 Filbert Street. The church is right across from Washington Square. It is managed by the Salesians of Don Bosco, a group of priests and brothers.

Many people call it "the Italian Cathedral of the West." This is a nickname, not its official title. The church has been a special place for San Francisco's Italian-American community for a long time. It offers church services in English, Italian, and Cantonese languages.

Church History

Early Days and Rebuilding

The first Saints Peter and Paul Church was built in 1884. It stood at the corner of Filbert Street and Grant Avenue. Sadly, a huge natural disaster destroyed it. This was the Great San Francisco Earthquake of 1906. After the earthquake, people worked hard to rebuild. The church building you see today was finished in 1924.

Challenges and Community Spirit

In the mid-1920s, the church faced some difficult times. There were several attempts by certain groups to cause harm to the building. Police officers worked to protect the church. They stopped these attempts to damage the building. Despite these challenges, the church remained a strong and important place for its community.

Serving Diverse Communities

In recent years, Saints Peter and Paul Church has also become a home for the city's Chinese-American Catholic community. It continues to offer weekly services in different languages. You can find services in Italian, Cantonese, and English. Sometimes, an older style of church service, called the Tridentine Mass, is also offered. This service uses Ecclesiastical Latin.

Saints Peter and Paul Church is part of the Archdiocese of San Francisco. This means it is connected to a larger group of Catholic churches in the area.

kids search engine
Saints Peter and Paul Church, San Francisco Facts for Kids. Kiddle Encyclopedia.