St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral is a

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cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

located in

Metuchen, New Jersey Metuchen ( ) is a suburban borough in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States. The borough is a commuter town of New York City, located in the heart of the Raritan Valley region within the New York Metropolitan area. The borough, along wit ...

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. It is the seat of the Diocese of Metuchen.

History

St. Francis of Assisi Parish

St. Francis began as a small

frame A frame is often a structural system that supports other components of a physical construction and/or steel frame that limits the construction's extent. Frame and FRAME may also refer to: Physical objects In building construction *Framing (con ...

mission church built in 1871 and dedicated to St. Joseph. St. Francis Parish was incorporated in that same church on January 26, 1878. A fire destroyed the church building on December 21, 1903. The second church, also built of wood, was dedicated in December 1904. Columbia Hall was built in 1920. The parish grew to more than 2,000 families by 1960 and the pastor, the Rev. John J. Foley had plans made for a new church. Columbia Hall was destroyed in a fire at this time and the plans were changed to include a parish hall and gymnasium as well. The rectory was completed in June 1961 and the ground breaking for the new church began on July 24 of the same year. Masses were held in various locations until the CYO Hall was completed in December 1961. The present church was dedicated on May 19, 1963.

St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral

On November 19, 1981

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

established the Diocese of Metuchen. St. Francis was chosen as the cathedral for the new diocese. On April 30, 2019,

St. Michael's Choir School St. Michael's Choir School (also known as SMCS, The Choir School, or St. Mike's Choir) is a semi-Independent school, private Catholic Church, Catholic Cathedral school, choir school for boys from Educational stage, grades 3-12 in Toronto, Ontario, ...

sang at Saint Francis of Assisi Cathedral as part of their 2019 New York Tour.

Architecture

The Cathedral of St. Francis was built in the Gothic Revival style and seats about 1,000 people. The interior walls are composed of limestone with marble

wainscotting Panelling (or paneling in the U.S.) is a Millwork (building material), millwork wall covering constructed from rigid or semi-rigid components. These are traditionally interlocking wood, but could be plastic or other materials. Panelling was deve ...

. The floors are

terrazzo Terrazzo is a composite material, poured in place or precast, which is used for floor and wall treatments. It consists of chips of marble, quartz, granite, glass, or other suitable material, poured with a cementitious binder (for chemical bind ...

and the woodwork is oak. The altars are carved from Italian marble. A bronze crucifix is above the altar as a part of the baldacchino. The facade features a rose window

Rectors

The following priests have served as the rector of St. Francis of Assisi Cathedral since 1981: *Msgr. Dominic Turtora *Msgr. Richard A. Behl *Msgr. Michael J. Alliegro *Msgr. Robert J. Zamorski

References

External links

Official Cathedral SiteDiocese of Metuchen Official Site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Francis of Assisi Cathedral (Metuchen) Roman Catholic Diocese of Metuchen Francis of Assisi Metuchen Roman Catholic churches in New Jersey Gothic Revival church buildings in New Jersey Churches in Middlesex County, New Jersey Religious organizations established in 1878 Roman Catholic churches completed in 1963 Metuchen, New Jersey 20th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United States