The Church of the Gesú is a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

and former

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

located in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

. Founded in 1868 by

Burchard Villiger Joseph Burchard Villiger (May 14, 1819 – November 5, 1902) was appointed Santa Clara University's fourth president in 1861 after the presidency of Felix Cicaterri. Burchard Villiger had served as the president of two Jesuit Colleges in the eas ...

, the church was the center of several Jesuit educational institutions, including St. Joseph's Preparatory School,

St. Joseph's University Saint Joseph's University (SJU or St. Joe's) is a private Jesuit university in Philadelphia and Lower Merion, Pennsylvania. The university was founded by the Society of Jesus in 1851 as Saint Joseph's College. Saint Joseph's is the seventh olde ...

, and the Gesú School. The

Baroque revival The Baroque Revival, also known as Neo-Baroque (or Second Empire architecture in France and Wilhelminism in Germany), was an architectural style of the late 19th century. The term is used to describe architecture and architectural sculptur ...

church was named after and loosely modeled after the Church of the Gesú in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The parish closed in 1993, and the building became the chapel of St. Joseph's Prep. The church is part of the

Girard Avenue Historic District The Girard Avenue Historic District is a national historic district which is located in the Cabot neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985. History and architectural features ...

History

On December 6, 1868, the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest

founded New St. Joseph's Church, being the second Jesuit Catholic church in

after Old St. Joseph's Church in

Old City Old City often refers to old town, the historic or original core of a city or town. Old City may refer to several places: Historical cities or regions of cities ''(by country)'' *Old City (Baku), Azerbaijan * Old City (Dhaka), Bangladesh, also ca ...

. This was soon renamed the Church of the

Holy Family The Holy Family consists of the Child Jesus, the Virgin Mary and Saint Joseph. The subject became popular in art from the 1490s on, but veneration of the Holy Family was formally begun in the 17th century by Saint François de Laval, the first ...

, intending it to be the center of a complex of Jesuit institutions, including St. Joseph's Preparatory School,

, and the Gesú School. A chapel,

refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the La ...

, and

parochial school A parochial school is a private primary or secondary school affiliated with a religious organization, and whose curriculum includes general religious education in addition to secular subjects, such as science, mathematics and language arts. The ...

were built following the relocation of the preparatory school and university from Old St. Joseph's Church in 1868. The Church of the Holy Family was renamed the Church of the Gesú in 1878, after the

Church of the Gesù , image = Church of the Gesù, Rome.jpg , imagesize = , caption = Giacomo della Porta's façade, precursor of Baroque , mapframe = yes , mapframe-caption = Click on the map for a fulls ...

, which is the universal

mother church Mother church or matrice is a term depicting the Christian Church as a mother in her functions of nourishing and protecting the believer. It may also refer to the primary church of a Christian denomination or diocese, i.e. a cathedral or a metro ...

of the Society of Jesus. The cornerstone of a new, grander church was laid on March 10, 1879, and the

cruciform Cruciform is a term for physical manifestations resembling a common cross or Christian cross. The label can be extended to architectural shapes, biology, art, and design. Cruciform architectural plan Christian churches are commonly described ...

edifice was completed in 1888. A dedication ceremony was held on December 12, 1888. The

church was designed by local architect Edwin F. Durang, and was modeled on its Roman counterpart. The interior, including the

mural A mural is any piece of graphic artwork that is painted or applied directly to a wall, ceiling or other permanent substrate. Mural techniques include fresco, mosaic, graffiti and marouflage. Word mural in art The word ''mural'' is a Spani ...

s, was decorated by the Italian artist

Nicola D'Ascenzo Nicola D'Ascenzo (September 25, 1871, Torricella Peligna, Italy – April 13, 1954, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) was an Italian-born American stained glass designer, painter and instructor. He is best known for creating stained glass windows fo ...

. The dimensions of the new church were: high, a central nave long and wide, and a main altar that is high. The two towers of the facade, on either side of the

Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...

, Ionic, and Tuscan columns are each tall. The church was also outfitted by Villiger with a number of paintings, which included eighteen portraits by the Mexican painter

Miguel Cabrera José Miguel Cabrera Torres (born April 18, 1983), nicknamed "Miggy", is a Venezuelan professional baseball first baseman and designated hitter for the Detroit Tigers of Major League Baseball (MLB). Since his debut in 2003 he has been a two-t ...

of the Jesuit Superiors General from Saint Ignatius through

Lorenzo Ricci Lorenzo Ricci, S.J. (2 August 1703
Vol. 13. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1912. 30 May 201824 November 1775) was an I ...

, as well as several

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

s. However, by 1903, these paintings were no longer in the church. By 1891, the church held over 370

relics In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tangi ...

for veneration by the faithful. Many of them were around 120 years old at the time they were obtained from Rome. The church served as a

parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

of the

Archdiocese of Philadelphia The Roman Catholic Metropolitan Archdiocese of Philadelphia is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in southeastern Pennsylvania, in the United States. It covers the City and County of Philadelphia as well a ...

from its opening until its closure in 1993 and merger with Saint Malachy's Church. The building was repurposed by St. Joseph's Prep as its school chapel. In 1985, the building was named as a

contributing property In the law regulating historic districts in the United States, a contributing property or contributing resource is any building, object, or structure which adds to the historical integrity or architectural qualities that make the historic distri ...

of the

References

Citations

Sources

* *

External links

* {{Authority control Historic district contributing properties in Philadelphia Former Roman Catholic church buildings in Pennsylvania Roman Catholic chapels in the United States 1868 establishments in Pennsylvania Religious organizations established in 1868 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1888 Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Philadelphia Baroque Revival architecture in the United States Society of Jesus in Pennsylvania