St. Matthew Catholic Church is 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

Roman 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 letter ...

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in the

Ballantyne Ballantyne may refer to: People * Charles Ballantyne (1867–1950), Canadian politician * David Ballantyne (1924–1986), a New Zealand journalist, novelist and short-story writer * Edith Ballantyne (born 1922), Czech-born Canadian executive secre ...

neighborhood of

Charlotte, North Carolina Charlotte ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Located in the Piedmont region, it is the county seat of Mecklenburg County. The population was 874,579 at the 2020 census, making Charlotte the 16th-most populo ...

, in the

Diocese of Charlotte The Diocese of Charlotte (''Dioecesis Carolinana'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in the Southern United States. It consists of 46 counties in western North Carolina, divided into ten vicariates. ...

. As of 2017, it is one of the largest Catholic parishes in the United States, with over 10,500 registered families.

History

On September 21, 1986, the

Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte The Diocese of Charlotte (''Dioecesis Carolinana'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory, or diocese, of the Catholic Church in the Southern United States. It consists of 46 counties in western North Carolina, divided into ten vicar forane ...

announced the plan for a new church. The congregation, then made up of 237 families, originally met for

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...

in the Tower Theater. In 2017 St. Matthew's had 35,599 registered members, making up 13.7 percent of the entire population of the Diocese of Charlotte. It has been described as a Catholic

megachurch A megachurch is a church with an unusually large membership that also offers a variety of educational and social activities, usually Protestant or Evangelical. The Hartford Institute for Religion Research defines a megachurch as any Protestant C ...

. St. Matthew's clergy and staff reportedly observed ministerial methods and management strategies from Protestant evangelical megachurches, including

Saddleback Church Saddleback Church is a Baptist Evangelical multi-site megachurch, affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, located in Lake Forest, California. It is the largest church in California, and one of the largest in the United States of America. ...

. The church operates a satellite campus in Waxhaw, called St. Matthew South. Until 2023, when it was overtaken by

St. Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archdiocese of Milan, Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a lead ...

Visalia Visalia ( ) is a city in the agricultural San Joaquin Valley of California. The population was 141,384 as per the 2020 census. Visalia is the fifth-largest city in the San Joaquin Valley, the 42nd most populous in California, and 192nd in ...

, St Matthew's was the largest Catholic

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, ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The church, which is run by the

Order of Friars Minor Capuchin The Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (; postnominal abbr. O.F.M. Cap.) is a religious order of Franciscan friars within the Catholic Church, one of Three " First Orders" that reformed from the Franciscan Friars Minor Observant (OFM Obs., now OFM ...

, claims to be welcoming to divorced Catholics as well as LGBTQ Catholics, and emphasizes the teachings and culture of the

Second Vatican Council The Second Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the , or , was the 21st Catholic ecumenical councils, ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church. The council met in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome for four periods (or sessions) ...

. In 1999 Fr. Robert Yurgel, a priest at St. Matthew's, sexually abused a fourteen-year-old

altar boy An altar server is a laity, lay assistant to a member of the clergy during a Christian liturgy. An altar server attends to supporting tasks at the altar such as fetching and carrying, ringing the altar bell, helps bring up the gifts, brings up t ...

. Yurgel was removed from the Capuchin order and defrocked from the Catholic priesthood in 2010. He was arrested in 2009 after pleading guilty to a second-degree sexual offense.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Matthew Catholic Church, Charlotte, North Carolina 1982 establishments in North Carolina Religious organizations established in 1982 Churches in Charlotte, North Carolina Franciscan churches in the United States Roman Catholic churches in North Carolina Roman Catholic Diocese of Charlotte