July 4, 2023

New Haven Catholic parishes merge to form Blessed Michael McGivney Parish

REGIONAL
Staff report

Father Ryan Lerner, moderator of St. Mary’s, announces the formation of the new Blessed Michael McGivney Parish at a Mass celebrated during a meeting of Knights of Columbus state deputies in New Haven, Connecticut, on June 9, 2023. St. Mary’s, birthplace of the Knights of Columbus, is one of seven New Haven Catholic parishes to be merged into the new Blessed Michael McGivney Parish. (Photo by Paul Haring)

NEW HAVEN, Conn. — The Archdiocese of Hartford, leaders of New Haven’s Catholic Community, and the Knights of Columbus announced that New Haven’s seven parishes will be merged into a unified municipal model named for Knights of Columbus founder Blessed Michael McGivney.

The newly formed Blessed Michael McGivney Parish will serve the New Haven Catholic community beginning July 1. Under the new model, the merged parish will operate eight existing church buildings and serve thousands of diverse parishioners. St. Mary Parish of New Haven – birthplace of the Knights of Columbus – will serve as the center of the newly united parish community.

Archbishop Leonard P. Blair of Hartford chose the new parish name from a list of three options, which had been decided upon by a committee of New Haven parishioners following several months of deliberation. “I wish to thank the faithful of New Haven for thoughtfully and prayerfully recommending that Sts. Aedan and Brendan, St. Anthony, St. Martin de Porres, St. Mary, St. Michael, Our Lady of Guadalupe, and St. Stanislaus be united as one parish under the patronage of Blessed Michael McGivney,” said Archbishop Blair. “Blessed Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of Columbus, was an exemplar of charity and steadfast devotion to Christ, still today inspiring millions of people to action for the common good, in the name of God.

“I will continue to pray for this new parish community and invite all New Haven Catholics to do the same during this time of great Catholic revitalization in the Elm City,” he said.

Father Ryan Lerner, who was appointed pastor of St. Mary’s in December 2021 and serves as the parish’s first moderator, said, “I feel profoundly moved, and so very excited, that our unified parish will be named for and entrusted to the patronal care of Blessed Michael McGivney.” He added that Father McGivney’s “intercessory prayers have helped to guide this local manifestation of the Body of Christ through a time of historic change, and will continue to inspire us as we journey forward together as one family of faith.”

Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly spoke to the historic ties between the Knights of Columbus and St. Mary’s, which is the oldest Catholic parish in New Haven and the second oldest in Connecticut.

“In 1882, in the basement of St. Mary’s, Blessed Michael McGivney gathered young Catholic men seeking ways to unite in their faith and find a means of supporting their families amid a society that frowned upon Catholic immigrants,” the supreme knight said. “They formed a brotherhood that would allow Knights to work together with their pastors and strengthen their families, parishes, and communities. The Knights of Columbus is honored that the new city-wide parish has adopted Blessed Michael McGivney’s name.”

Today, visitors to St. Mary Church of Blessed Michael McGivney Parish can visit Blessed Michael McGivney’s remains, which were re-entombed following the Knights’ centennial in March 1982, making the church a shrine for Knights who visit from all over the world.