Irish Capuchins give mission at St. Gabriel’s, New York

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Irish Capuchins Give Mission at St. Gabriel's A three weeks' mission in St. Gabriel's Church, Thirty-seventh street and Second avenue, was begun on Sunday, Feb. 8, by Irish Capuchin Fathers, the Rev. Brendan O'Callaghan, the Rev. Thomas Dowling, LL.D., the Rev. Stanislaus Kavanagh and the Rev. Clement Connolly. The first week was devoted to the married women of the parish, and each afternoon the children's mission was held. The church was thronged both at the morning Masses and lectures, and at the evening devotions. Rarely have the devout people of St. Gabriel's manifested such religious enthusiasm and on every side one hears unstinted praise of the zeal and eloquence of the distinguished missionaries. The second week of the mission was for the unmarried women and girls of the parish, and the third week, commencing on Sunday, Feb. 22, is devoted to the men. The success that has already attended the labors of the Irish Capuchin missionaries in St. Gabriel's warrants the conviction that their work will be crowned with success. The Irish Capuchin Fathers have the oldest association of any religious institution with New York. The history of Catholicism in this great center of Catholicity is indissolubly tied up with the Irish Capuchins. On Wednesday, Oct. 5, 1785, the cornerstone of the first Catholic church in New York City, St. Peter's, Barclay street, was laid. The ground was bought by the Irish Capuchin, Father Charles Whelan, who was the first pastor of St. Peter's, the pioneer church of this city. The church was opened for divine service on Nov. 4, 1786. The Irish Capuchin Fathers are preaching in the Chapel of Maria Reparatrice on the Tuesday afternoons of Lent; St. John's Church, Kingsbridge, Wednesday evenings; a triduum for the Holy Name Society in the Church of the Holy Spirit; a triduum in St. Patrick's Cathedral in preparation for the feast of St. Patrick. • • •