After parishioners fought to keep it open, a historic church will be designated an 'oratory,' the Archdiocese of Newark announced.
Our Lady of Mount Carmel in Montclair has been recently established as an oratory, saving it from closure. Mass was held at at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Montclair last weekend. The priest offered Communion and the congregation recited the Lord’s Prayer, as they have for generations at the towering brick church.
“Small parishes that may be struggling with viability can retain use of the church building through the classification of ‘oratory,’” she said.The designation respects “the strong bonds people develop with their faith communities and church buildings,” Margiotta said. The church, built in 1937, has always welcomed new people, especially immigrant families from Italy who created a tight knit community over the years, said Marialena Marzullo. However, the neighborhood of Italian immigrants near the Bay Street train station on the Montclair-Glen Ridge border gradually changed and became more diverse as church attendance dwindled.
More than $300,000 in repairs have been made to the Our Lady of Mount Carmel church building, diocese officials said.
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