St. Stanislaus Kostka Church (St. Louis, Missouri) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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St. Stanislaus Kostka Church
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Eastern exterior front of the church in 2020
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| Location | 1413 North 20th Street, St. Louis, Missouri |
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| Built | 1891 |
| Architect | Wessbecher & Hummel |
| Website | St. Stanislaus Parish |
| NRHP reference No. | 79003635 |
| Added to NRHP | July 10, 1979 |
St. Stanislaus Kostka Church is a special church in St. Louis, Missouri. It's an independent Catholic church, which means it runs itself. It used to be part of the main Catholic Church. The church was started in 1880 to help the Polish people living in St. Louis. Today, the people who go to the church manage it themselves as a non-profit group.
The church building is famous for its beautiful and grand design. It's a great example of the Polish Cathedral style of architecture. This style is known for being very fancy and impressive.
The church is also known for a big disagreement it had with the main Catholic leaders in St. Louis. This fight was about who should control the church and its money. In 2005, the Archbishop (a high-ranking Catholic leader) said that the church's leaders and its priest were "excommunicated." This means they were no longer officially part of the Catholic Church. He also wanted to close the church. But the church members held a huge Christmas Eve service, and many people came to support them. The church and the main Catholic leaders finally settled their disagreement in 2013.
Church's Story
In 1878, the main Catholic leaders in St. Louis decided to build a church for the growing Polish community. Before this, Polish Catholics went to St. Patrick's Church. Building on St. Stanislaus Kostka began in 1880. The church was built in a neighborhood north of Downtown St. Louis where many Polish immigrants lived. The first church building looked like old Roman buildings. It was managed by a group called the Franciscans. This church was so important that it helped start three other Polish churches later on.
In 1891, a new agreement was made about the church's property. It said that the church property would be owned by a group of people, including a priest and church members. A new, bigger church building was finished in 1892. It was designed by Wessbecher and Hummel.
In 1928, a fire damaged the church. It destroyed the middle dome and most of the inside decorations. The dome was never rebuilt. In 1969, a very important visitor came to the church: Cardinal Karol Wojtyla, who later became Pope John Paul II. The church building was named a City Landmark in 1976. It was also added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1979. This means it's a very important historical building. The church is located near where a famous housing complex called Pruitt–Igoe used to be.
Even as Polish families moved away from the neighborhood, the church kept serving the Polish Catholic community. By the 1950s, most of its local members had left. But people from the wider Polish community still supported it. By the 1970s, the church buildings were getting old and falling apart. So, the church members started a big project to fix up the church. They also bought land around the church. Later, they built a Polish Heritage Center. By 2005, the church owned about 8 acres of land. Its leaders thought all the church's property was worth about $9.5 million.
Disagreement with Catholic Leaders
This big disagreement was about who should control the church's buildings and money. It was also about who had the power to make decisions for the church. The main question was whether the church's property should be controlled by a priest chosen by the Archbishop (which is the usual rule for Catholic churches) or by a group of church members. This idea of church members having control is called "trusteeism." The disagreement started a long time ago and continued with several Archbishops.
The church's leaders believed that the Archbishop wanted to take control of their property mainly for money reasons. They pointed out that the church had fixed itself up and grown without any money from the main Catholic leaders. They thought the Archbishop wanted to close the church once he had control of it.
The main Catholic leaders said that the church's board members had changed the original rules from 1891. They claimed these changes were made without permission. The original rules said that the church members' board should only advise the priest. But the changed rules gave the board full control of the church. Because of this, the Archbishop asked the church to follow the usual Catholic rules again. The church board asked the Holy See (the Vatican) for help, but their request was turned down. The main Catholic leaders did not say they owned the church property itself. Instead, they argued about who should be on the church's board and how they should be chosen. A court later decided that the church corporation owned its property. The court also said the church had the right to make its own rules that limited the Archbishop's power.
In 2004, the Archbishop removed both priests from the church. He moved the Polish services to another church. When the priests left, they took some church items like hymnals and records. In 2005, the Archbishop warned the church board members that they would be "interdicted" if they didn't follow his instructions. An interdict means they couldn't take part in certain church activities. When the board didn't agree, the Archbishop issued the interdict. He said they had "damaged seriously the unity of the Church."
In December 2005, the church board decided to hire a new priest, Rev. Marek B. Bozek. His own bishop suspended him for leaving his job without permission. In response, the Archbishop declared that Bozek and the church board members were guilty of "schism." This means they were breaking away from the Roman Catholic Church. This automatically meant they were "excommunicated." The Archbishop warned other Catholics not to receive sacraments from a priest who was in schism. He also said he planned to close St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish. After this, many people came to the first Mass led by the new priest on Christmas Eve 2005. A few days later, the Archbishop officially closed St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish because it was operating separately.
In 2008, the Vatican supported the excommunications. In 2009, Pope Benedict XVI removed Bozek from being a priest. Bozek later returned to Poland in 2022.
What Happened Next
In 2008, some of the former church board members met with Archbishop Raymond L. Burke. They wanted to be officially part of the Catholic Church again. They were welcomed back and were no longer excommunicated. These members then joined a lawsuit against the St. Stanislaus Parish Corporation. They wanted the corporation to follow the original 1891 rules that the church and the main Catholic leaders had agreed on. If they won the lawsuit, the Archbishop was ready to appoint a Catholic priest to manage St. Stanislaus.
In 2010, the main Catholic leaders offered to settle the lawsuit. This offer would have let the church keep its property and money. But it would have brought the church back under the control of the main Catholic leaders. There was no promise that the church wouldn't be closed later. The priest, Marek Bozek, would have had to leave. The church members voted on the offer, but they rejected it.
Even though the church is in an older part of St. Louis, it grew by about 500 families under Bozek's leadership. This happened even though about 200 families left because of the disagreement. Bozek had some different ideas, like allowing priests to marry and letting women and gay people become priests. These ideas made some traditional members leave but attracted new people.
On March 15, 2012, a judge in St. Louis ruled that the church's property and money belonged to the St. Stanislaus Parish Corporation, not the main Catholic leaders. The judge wrote that "The archbishop may own the souls of wayward St. Stanislaus parishioners, but the St. Stanislaus Parish Corporation owns its own property."
On February 13, 2013, St. Stanislaus Corporation and the main Catholic leaders in St. Louis made a joint statement. They said they had solved their legal disagreement. The main Catholic leaders would stop their appeal, and the court's decision would be final. St. Stanislaus agreed that it would not say it was connected to the main Catholic Church in any way. Neither side paid money to the other. They hoped ending the legal fight would help everyone heal.
In August 2013, the Bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri announced that they were talking with St. Stanislaus about the church joining the Episcopal Church (United States). St. Stanislaus was also talking with other groups about possibly joining them.
In August 2019, it was announced that St. Stanislaus would host a special event for the Episcopal Diocese. However, later that same day, leaders from St. Stanislaus said they had decided not to officially join the Episcopal Diocese of Missouri. They said that property rights were a key reason for their decision.
See also
- Franciscan Sisters of Our Lady of Perpetual Help
- Polish Cathedral style churches
