History:
Our Parish
St Mary's Parish was founded in 1855 by Fr. Francis Xavier Pierz for German settlers who had moved to this area. Fr. Pierz bought an entire block of land for $500.
Our history is closely connected to the history of the Benedictines at St. John's Abbey in Collegeville and St. Benedict Monastery in St. Joseph. Monks from Pennsylvania were given land by King Ludwig of Bavaria. One year after the establishment of the parish in 1856, a Benedictine priest from St. John's became the first pastor of the small, wood-frame, "L-shaped" style St. Mary's church/school located across the street from the present parish office, where the present NetGain Technololgies (former Federal Building) stands.
In 1857 Benedictine nuns from Pennsylvania settled in St. Joseph. A number of Sisters were sent here on a mission to begin the first St. Mary's School, the first school in Stearns County.
The congregation grew so rapidly that in 1864 a new gothic-style church was built along St. Germain Street where the Oasis Art Gallery now stands. A large rectory was built for priests who served the parish in 1868. It was located in the area of the Cathedral Garden on the north side of the Church.
Education was always part of the history of St. Mary's. In 1896 a new school was dedicated. This part of the school remains today; it is the tallest part of the St. Mary's School building. The school at its zenith enrolled up to 1,000 students in grades 1-8.
The parish continued to grow at a rapid pace with the city. In 1916 a huge, four-floor, 'L'-shaped parish center was built, called St. Mary's Institute, complete with bowling lanes and a swimming pool. It stood where the present Insty Prints and Commonwealth Insurance building stands.
On a beautiful summer day in 1920, the gothic-style church caught fire and burned to the ground in a fire that was so hot the tower bells melted and dripped down the steeple. Some items from the church were saved, but the building was completely lost.
In 1922 Fr. Luke Fink OSB left for Italy to attend the Eucharistic Congress. He returned with plans to model the new St. Mary's Church after a fifth-century basilica in Ravenna, Italy. The construction of the new church began in 1922. When the basement was finished, worship could resume for the parish in a church. The upper church was completed in 1931 during the depression. Great love and sacrifice was shown by the members of the parish to build such a beautiful church at a time when so many had so little. At about this time, Holy Angels Church--the Cathedral of the Diocese--burned to the ground. It was rebuilt, but not to its former beauty.
In 1937, by decree of the Holy Father, St. Mary's Church became St. Mary's Cathedral. The Bishop's chair--or cathedra--became a part of St. Mary's Church, making it the Cathedral. The operation of the parish was assumed by the Diocese. The Benedictine priests moved to the east side of St. Cloud to staff St. Augustine Church. Eight diocesan priests came to staff the Cathedral.
The residence for the priests located behind the present rectory (then a convent) was in poor shape. In 1947 it was demolished. The priests moved into what was then the convent for the Benedictine sisters who taught in the school (the present parish office/rectory complex); the Sisters moved their living quarters to the top two floors of the St. Mary's Institute Building which stood across the street from the Cathedral.
The first floor of the social center became St. Gertrude's School for the mentally handicapped. In 1971 the Institute Building was sold and demolished to make room for the new "Ring Road."
In 1980 the sanctuary in the upper church was renovated and the church was consecrated. In 1984 the pipe organ was installed and dedicated. All the bishops of the United States, who met at St. John's Abbey and University for their annual meeting, were present for this event, worshipping with the people of St. Mary's Cathedral. At this time Bishop Bartholome, bishop emeritus of the diocese died suddenly. He was the first bishop to be buried out of the renovated Cathedral church and the first bishop to have all the bishops of the U.S. at his funeral. These were quite the events.
In 1988 the beautiful Mother of Perpetual Help Shrine in the lower church caught fire, turning it to ash and causing great damage to the lower church and smoke damage to the upper church. Using this as an opportunity, a plan was made to transform the lower church into a smaller space for worship during the week, with a Eucharistic chapel and a gathering area.
In 2006, five 'swaztika' symbols were removed from the sides of the Cathedral church, originally inserted as simply decorative crosses before the Nazi's came to power. The parish council felt that the symbol as a cross could never be reclaimed because of the pain and suffering the Nazi regime brought to the world. The disks were replaced by five new disks depicting the "mysteries of Light" composed by John Paul II. Full details available via the luminous disks history