St. George Church Preservation Society News & Archives

A quote from P F Gallagher, builder of St. George Church, shared by Kathy Gallagher: “...the history of civilization has been written by the Builder. The truest evidence of the greatness of people of the past is found in the remains of their buildings.” Thursday, August 27, 2020 on the steps of St. George Church NEWS CONFERENCE ON THE STEPS OF ST. GEORGE CHURCH ON AUGUST 27, 2020 On Thursday morning, parishioners and supporters of the St. George Church Preservation Society gathered on the steps of St. George Church to hold a news conference. The event was well attended by people from the neighborhood, parishioners, alumni and the media. SGCPS had masks and hand-sanitizer available and everyone practiced social distancing. The event was covered by the South Pittsburgh Reporter, the Post-Gazette, KDKA & WTAE television. Bob Kress, Class of 66, summarized the status of the proposals that have been made to Bishop Zubik regarding the offers to care for and restore the beloved c...

News Conference on the steps of St. George Church (St. John Vianney) 225 Allen St. Pittsburgh, PA 15210 at 11:00am on Thursday, August 27, 2020 Dear St. George Family: We invite you to please join us in Allentown as we gather to express our support for the preservation of St. George Church and express our outrage at being betrayed by Bishop Zubik as he recently ordered his workers to start to dismantle our beloved church. The community will join with parishioners, preservationists and the St. George Church Preservation Society (SGCPS) to hear an update of recent developments regarding this historic church and present their demands. In recent weeks, Bishop Zubik has chosen to disrespect and betray this community, our parishioners and the Vatican court as he has ordered his workers to begin to dismantle our church. The workers have removed artifacts and have prepared to remove the stained-glass windows from the church. Under canon law, parishioners share in the patrimony of the church. B...

While we are waiting for a final decision on our Vatican appeal, Bishop Zubik has decided to remove sacred and irreplaceable items from our church. There is a widely held belief among professionals that an appeal before the Vatican should prevent something like this from happening. Usually, out of respect for the process, churches are left intact during an appeal in case the Vatican rules in favor of the parishioners. This is what has happened in other dioceses, but sadly, is not the case here in Pittsburgh. This has happened even though parishioners and the St. George Church Preservation Society have repeatedly made viable proposals to care for and restore the church  at no cost to the Diocese. We continue to pray that the Vatican will rule in favor of our parishioners. In that case we would be entitled to have mass there and items taken away from our church would need to be returned. We have notified our canon lawyers here and in Rome. They have expressed their shock an...

As we mentioned in our previous newsletter, one of our faithful parishioners has submitted an application to the Pittsburgh Historic Review Commission (HRC) to nominate St. George Church for historic status. On July 1, 2020, the application moved to the initial hearing and it received a "Determination of nomination viability". It will now proceed to the next of several steps in the review process. The nomination will face a full review before the HRC at their virtual hearing on August 5, 2020. At that time, public comments will be accepted. If the nomination is approved at the HRC, it will move to the City Planning Commission, then to City Council and the Mayor for their approval. If all is approved, this historic status will protect the the church from any improper alterations and could prevent the demolition of the structure if it is proposed again. We will keep you updated as the application moves through the journey. Please pray for a successful review.

SPRING / SUMMER NEWS 2020 Spaghetti Dinner III Postponed We hope that everyone is staying safe and healthy. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, we needed to postpone our annual Spring Event. Once the situation gets back to normal, we'll restart the planning. It may turn out that Spaghetti Dinner III will be our Fall Event for this year. We'll keep you informed as we look forward to seeing everyone again and enjoy the fellowship at these events. Vatican Appeal The appeal has faced delays since Italy has been significantly affected by the pandemic. We checked in with our attorneys in Rome and it turns out that their staffs and families are doing OK. They have recently reopened their offices and are waiting for the court system to reopen. This decision will be the last step in our appeal process and we are praying for a positive outcome. Regardless of the final decision, we intend to continue to maintain the St. George Church Preservation Society along with our web site, PO box and ...

Memorial Day 2020 We remember and honor those who served. -St. George Church Preservation Society Photo Credit: Helen Baney, Class of 1942   On December 7, 1991 The St. George World War II memorial was restored and rededicated. Inscribed are the names of the 1017 who saw service including the 35 who lost their lives. The memorial is presently in storage by the Diocese.   To view the list of names that appear on the memorial, visit our website by clicking here.

HAPPY EASTER TO OUR ST. GEORGE / ST. JOHN VIANNEY FAMILY & SUPPORTERS EASTER 2016 EASTER 2016 We hope that everyone is doing well and staying healthy during these challenging times. We are looking forward to bringing everyone together again. Once the COVID-19 crisis has passed, we'll begin preparations and set a new date for Spaghetti Dinner III. Best Wishes,  SGCPS

To our St. George Family and Supporters: We pray that everyone is staying in good health  as we face today's challenges. We have suspended preparations for our May event, Spaghetti Dinner III.  Once the situation begins to return to normal, we'll reserve a new date and get a “Save the Date” notice out to everyone. We look forward to seeing all of you again soon! Thank you for your patience, The St. George Event Committee

On Super Bowl weekend, check this out. The article appeared in the Post-Gazette on April 18, 2001.

Happy New Year to the St. George Family: Alumni, Friends, Neighbors, Supporters and Parishioners of St. George and St. John Vianney   NEWS   Vatican Appeal, Final Decision Soon Our appeal of the closing of St. George Church (St. John Vianney) advanced to the Apostolic Signatura (Supreme Court) at the Vatican in February, 2019. Under the guidance of our canon lawyer in Rome, we were notified that our case has now moved to the Collegium, which is the last stage of the appeal process. We expect their final decision in early 2020. Regardless of the decision, we intend to maintain the St. George Church Preservation Society along with our web site, PO box, phone number and other accounts to support our network of contacts and to keep the St. George Family connected. Also,  we will continue to organize fellowship events that bring our family together. As we pray for a positive decision from the Vatican, we can hope that the Spirit will inspire the Diocese to reconsider their con...