Chicago Church Tour: Stops 1-3

CHICAGO - For a few years now, I have wanted to visit all of the great churches in Chicago. Now, I am finally up to the challenge. I began visiting a different Catholic Church in Chicago each week beginning on March 14. I hope to study each parish, each church's architecture and then go on a tour of the neighborhood after attending mass.


Stop 1: Sunday, March 14, 2010: St. Barnabas Church - I thought a great way to begin my tour would be to stop at a community church in my favorite Chicago neighborhood. With that in mind, I made my first stop at St. Barnabas, located at 10134 South Longwood in the Beverly community. It was fitting that I visited this church the day after my birthday, the same day the South Side Irish Parade would have occurred, in the very community it would have. The mass wasn't crowded, but the way the church is set up creates a spacey feel. Unlike many churches on my tour, St. Barnabas is a community church. I had a strong feeling that I was the only non-regular there. It is a small place, but I really liked the way it was set up. The pews were arranged in almost a semi-circle around the altar. The priest was easy to understand and seemed to know most people there. St. Barnabas won't be recognized as one of Chicago's great architectural structures, but it is in an ideal location.

Sunday, March 28, 2010: Holy Family Church - I enjoyed my first visit to one of Chicago's most important Irish Catholic Churches on Palm Sunday. At Holy Family, 1080 West Roosevelt, I doubt I was the only tourist. It is rich in history and not too far from many downtown attractions. I enjoyed the long mass Fr. Jerry said. Palm Sunday is always one of my favorite masses and I am glad I was at one of the city's premier churches. It is located right next to St. Ignatius College Prep in the University Village neighborhood. I would have liked to go on a walking tour of the neighborhood after mass, but although the sun was out, it was just too cold. I wanted to walk down Taylor Street to see Little Italy, which seems even smaller than the one in New York. The Jane Addams Hull House will also be a place I'd like to visit the next time I am in University Village.

Sunday, April 4, 2010: St. Margaret of Scotland - Perhaps the most crowded mass I have ever been to was Easter Sunday's at St. Margaret of Scotland, 9837 South Throop, in the Washington Heights neighborhood. I like the Pastor, Fr. Daniel Mallette, who said the mass. I had the chance to interview him for a video documentary while at Saint Xavier University in 2007. The congregation seemed to be a mix of people who left the neighborhood years ago and current residents.

Photo: St. Margaret of Scotland Church, 9837 South Throop. Easter Sunday, 2010.