On the weekend of September 24 and 25 we will celebrate the Feast of Saint Matthew, Patron of our Parish Community.
In 1886 The Church of Saint Matthew was established as a Daughter church of the Mother church of German Catholics – The Assumption. Other Daughter churches also sprang from the Assumption – Saint Bernard, Saint Agnes, Saint Francis de Sales and Guardian Angels.
For 136 years Saint Matthew’s Community has tried to truly be a visible sign of God’s love on the West Side of Saint Paul. Many generations have been a part of the story of our parish – a story that changed and developed over the times and seasons of those many years.
The Community of Saint Matthew is an anchor in West Side life. Few, if any, institutions have as long and as committed a history in the life of The West Side.
In 1986, the Parish Centennial year, two parish artists (Craig David and Richard Schletty), with the support of a generous bequest and a $50,000 grant from the National Endowment of the Arts, created the West Side History Murals that hang on the walls of our church.
Our neighboring Lutheran Church, Holy Trinity, also founded in 1886, was celebrating her Centennial year. The History Murals were meant to commemorate Holy Trinity’s life and contribution, as well as the life of the Community of Saint Matthew.
Most parishes compose a written history of the parish on the 100th anniversary of founding. We chose to tell our story in pictures and in a form that would be a lasting reminder of who we are and from where we have come.
All are invited, on Sunday afternoon, September 25, to a presentation by the two artists describing the paintings and their reasons for choosing the events, persons, and values the murals depict. There is further information about this event in another place in the Parish Bulletin.
Let us celebrate our parish community as we celebrate the great Apostle and Evangelist, Saint Matthew.
Father Steve Adrian
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