QUINCY — On Jan. 1, St. Rose of Lima became an official parish of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois. In a decree released Dec. 23, 2013, Bishop Thomas John Paprocki established St. Rose of Lima as a "personal parish."
"Since this is not a territorial parish, there are no parish boundaries," he declared. For the past several years, St. Rose of Lima had been a chaplaincy, with members joining but remaining members of their local Catholic parish.
Earlier in 2013 Bishop Paprocki consulted with the presbyteral council and with the priests of the Quincy deanery, in particular the pastors of the neighboring parishes. On Nov. 25, the Presbyteral Council voted unanimously to recommend the establishment of St. Rose of Lima as a personal parish in Quincy in accord with Canon 518 for the pastoral needs of those persons who have an affinity for the celebration of the sacred liturgy according to the extraordinary form.
St. Rose of Lima, located at 1009 N. Eighth St., is staffed by priests of the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter, specifically Father Arnaud Devillers, FSSP, who is now pastor and who has been the chaplain, and Father Robert Fromageot, FSSP, who is now parochial vicar and who has been assistant chaplain.
St. Rose of Lima has a long history that dates back to 1892. The present St. Rose of Lima Church was built by the Irish community of Quincy and dedicated on June 2, 1912. It is representative of the Venetian Gothic style: a mix of Gothic, Romanesque and Byzantine styles. However, the original St. Rose of Lima Parish existed from 1892 until 1999 when it was merged with St. John the Baptist Parish to become All Saints Parish.
The church, which was designated as a historic landmark by the City of Quincy in 2000, is known for its outstanding collection of stained glass windows, which are characteristic of the Munich pictorial style.
St. Rose of Lima Church was closed in 2005 and most of its contents were either moved to other churches or sold. The only items left in the church were the original pews and the historic 1912 Wicks organ. In 2006, All Saints then joined with St. Boniface Parish and Immaculate Conception (St. Mary) Parish to become Blessed Sacrament Parish.
In 2007, then-Bishop George J. Lucas gave permission to re-open the church for the traditional Latin Mass. Before it was reopened in 2008, three marble altars from Barat College in Chicago were installed as well as the matching altar rail and pulpit. The original cross from St. John the Baptist Church in Quincy now hangs in St. Rose of Lima Church.
Bishop Paprocki consecrated the altars on June 10, 2012. Currently a project is under way to restore the windows and is expected to be completed late this year, Father Devillers noted in a recent parish bulletin.
As of Jan. 1, the diocese of Springfield in Illinois has 131 parishes, said Marlene Mulford, chancellor for the diocese.