Church of Our Saviour is a

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parish church in the

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, located at 59 Park Avenue and 38th Street in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

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. The parish was established in 1955 and the church was constructed from 1957 to 1959. In 2015 the parish of St. Stephen/Our Lady of the Scapular merged with the parish of Our Saviour. This included the Chapel of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary which had previously merged with St. Stephen/OLS.

Building

The church was designed by Paul C. Reilly, who was also known for his design of Manhattan theaters. It was the first church built in New York City that was designed to accommodate air conditioning; the cooling equipment is hidden in the tower. The church of St. Stephen the Martyr contained a series of paintings depicting the Stations of the Cross executed by

Constantino Brumidi Constantino Brumidi (July 26, 1805 – February 19, 1880) was a Greek-Italian-American historical painter, best known and honored for his fresco work, Apotheosis of Washington, in the Capitol Building in Washington, DC. Parentage and early life ...

, beginning in 1868. Brumidi's Stations have been restored and the frames regilded. In March 2016 they were installed in Our Saviour, the parish church of the new merged parish of Our Saviour, St. Stephen and Our Lady of the Scapular, and the Chapel of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary.

Controversy

In 2001, Father George Rutler was appointed pastor of the Parish of Our Savior. He reintroduced the traditional liturgies of the Latin Rite and commissioned a church renovation which included icons by artist Ken Woo. In 2013, a new pastor replaced Rutler, Father Robert Robbins, removed the artwork, causing complaints to be aired from both the Catholic and artistic communities. Robbins also discontinued the traditional rites.Frankovich, Nicholas (July 25, 2015
"On Park Avenue, a Picture of the Catholic Church Divided"
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References

External links

The Roman Catholic Parish of Our Saviour, St. Stephen and Our Lady of the Scapular, and the Chapel of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary website
Roman Catholic churches completed in 1959 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States Murray Hill, Manhattan Christian organizations established in 1955 Roman Catholic churches in Manhattan 1955 establishments in New York City {{Manhattan-church-stub