Saint Anthony of Padua Church

Life of St. Anthony of Padua (1195-1231)

A Portuguese saint, born in Lisbon in 1195 (though carbon-dating performed on his bones in 1982 suggest a different birth year). His father was a Captain in the Portuguese Royal Army. Anthony joined the Franciscan Order in 1221 and was asked by St. Francis to instruct the Order in the study of the scriptures. Anthony died in 1231. Pope Gregory IX enrolled him among the saints in 1232. At Padua, a magnificent basilica was built in his honor; his holy relics were entombed there in 1263. From the time of his death up to the present day, countless miracles have occurred through St. Anthony's intercession, so that he is known as the Wonder-Worker. On January 16, 1946, Pope Pius XII, declared St. Anthony a Doctor of the Church, with the title, Doctor Evangelicus, Doctor of Gospels. Within the entire Community of Saints, only 33 have be declared Doctors of the Church for their exemplary scholasticism and their Christ-like lives. Anthony is typically depicted with a book and the Infant Child Jesus, to whom He miraculously appeared. Anthony died in Italy, but is still very much a Portuguese saint. He is patron saint of Lisbon and of preachers of the gospels. He is also often invoked as the saint of lost causes and lost articles.

PREFACE: Chronology of the Establishment of Catholicism in Southeastern Massachusetts ^ top
1820:	St. Mary’s, First Catholic Church in SE Mass est. in New Bedford by Fr. Philip Larissey.
1837:	First Catholic church in Fall River – St. John’s.
1840:	Train Service (New Bedford to Boston) established; Many French & Irish begin arriving.
1844:	Hartford Diocese set off from Boston.
1847:	City of New Bedford Inc.; Hartford Diocese makes New Bedford a mission of Fall River.
1855:	St. Mary’s Church dedicated in Fall River.
1872:	Providence Diocese set off from Hartford.
1904:	Fall River Diocese set off from Providence on March 12, 1904.
1905:	Exterior of the Church is completed.
1906:	Bronze Cross is erected atop the spire on New Year’s Day.
1908:	Basement was finished; 1^st Mass said there by Bishop Feehan on July 4^th.
1909 - 2000:	Families form the parish.
1912:	St. Anthony’s is dedicated on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 28^th).

St. Anthony Parish ^ top
1895 – Est. on the 700^th Anniversary of the birth of Saint Anthony of Padua.

Father Hormisdas Deslauriers (1861-1916)

St. Anthony’s first pastor, Father Deslauriers was the visionary leader who saw the grand church for the parish. He was the fountainhead of the effort throughout the entire project and continued as the inspirational leader of the parish and the community. The chronology of the founding of the Fall River Diocese (above) illustrates that there was hope in 1902 among the French-Canadian community that New Bedford might be selected as the seat of a new Diocese and St. Anthony’s grand architectural plan included many hallmarks of a cathedral. Indeed, the naming of Fall River as the seat of the new diocese and the laying of St. Anthony’s cornerstone came within three month of each other in 1904.

Fr. Deslauriers was born in Saint Therese, Quebec on March 27, 1861. Fr. Deslauriers’ father was a builder of churches in Canada. He was ordained August 10, 1886 at Notre Dame de Lourdes, Montreal. He died June 19, 1916 in the rectory. His body was interred in the south courtyard of the church. The New Bedford City Council met in special session the evening before to grant this special burial place for this great man of the Church. A large bronze tablet with his image marks his grave.

1896:	First church built, of wood, on Bullard Street. First Mass celebrated March 8^th, 1896.
1896 – 9/1:	Grammar school started with 300 pupils & Holy Cross Sisters of St. Larent Quebec.
1896:	Rectory was completed in December.
1902:	Joseph Venne completes his plan for a cathedral-like church to replace the wooden one.

Joseph Venne also designed the Basilica of Joseph’s Oratory on Mont Royal in Montreal (1924). Venne was instrumental in defining the look of Montreal, designing over 100 buildings from 1880 to 1925. Venne's ornate aesthetic can be seen in a wide variety of buildings including the Notre-Dame-de-Bonsecours chapel, the Monument-National theatre and the St-Enfant-Jésus du Mile-End church to less well-known houses, apartments, banks and fire stations around the city. Venne was also responsible for drafting Montreal's first Building Code and pioneering the construction of safer, fire-resistant buildings.

Écomusée du fier monde, which focuses on local Montreal history, recently mounted “Jos. Venne, Architecte,” an exhibit, which focused on this pivotal and somewhat forgotten individual responsible in large part for forging Montreal's unique aesthetic. The exhibit closed June 2, 2002.

1904 March 12^th:	Fall River Diocese formed.
1904 June 5^th:	St. Anthony’s Cornerstone is laid. Huge parade of 3000 marched from City Hall to the St. Anthony’s as part of the ceremonies. Dr. Paquin was the grand marshal. Bishop Stang, first Bishop, blessed the cornerstone.
1904 Sept. 20^th:	4PM the Clerestory wall of the North Transept collapsed, killing to workers and injuring five others.
1905:	Construction resumes in the spring.

Church Dimensions:

Steeple Height:	256 ft.
Nave Length:	241 ft.
Nave width:	80 ft.
Nave Height:	65 ft.
Transepts:	135 ft.
Lower steeples:	135 ft.

Gold-plated, Bronze Cross atop the steeple is 19 ft in height. It was raised New Year’s Day, 1906. Its base was inscribed with the names of the parishioners. Arsene Roy, a New Bedford metalworker built/installed the cross.

Seating Capacity:

Nave:	1400
Balcony:	300
Choir loft:	40
Sanctuary Chancel (Choir):	100
Total Church capacity:	1840

The entire church including furnishing cost $342,000, between 1903 and 1912.

St. Anthony’s exterior is constructed of Springfield red sandstone quarried at Springfield/Longmeadow, MA. Sandstone is a coarse-grained, sedimentary rock consisting of consolidated masses of sand deposited by moving water or by wind. The chemical constitution of sandstone is the same as that of sand; the rock is thus composed essentially of quartz. The cementing material that binds together the grains of sand is usually composed of silica, calcium carbonate, or iron oxide.

Granite blocks for the foundation came from Denault’s quarry, part of Sullivan’s Ledge.

Basic Architectural Style: Romanesque Cruciform
Built in the shape of a cross with Barrel-vaulted nave, and rounded windows at the tops.

The Gloria, the Crossing of the Nave & Transepts, depicts the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. The Dove, or Paraclete, Comforter (L. Consolator; Gr. parakletos), is an appellation of the Holy Ghost. The Greek word which, as a designation of the Holy Ghost at least, occurs only in St. John (xiv, 16, 26; xv, 26; xvi, 7), has been variously translated "advocate", "intercessor", "teacher, "helper", "comforter". According to St. John the mission of the Paraclete is to abide with the disciples after Jesus has withdrawn His visible presence from them; to inwardly bring home to them the teaching externally given by Christ and thus to stand as a witness to the doctrine and work of the Savior.

Thus, is the Gloria surrounded by the Tetramorph
The Four Evangelists:

Angel/Human:	St. Matthew
Lion:	St. Mark
Ox:	St. Luke
Eagle:	St. John

(as described in Ezekiel’s vision & the Book of Revelations 4:5-11).

The Tympanum above the main front door carries the Latin Inscription: "The working people of Saint Anthony hath built this temple to the Lord."

Giovanni Castagnoli's Choirs of Angels ^ top

Giovanni Castagnoli (1863-1914) was born in Borgo Taro, Italy, near Parma and studied art in Florence. He also worked on the (now lost) Notre Dame Church in Fall River as well as the Church of the Blessed Sacrament in that city. Several other churches in New England, including Berlin, NH, also feature his work. Angels from almost all nine celestial choirs figure prominently in Giovanni Castagnoli’s decorative plan for the interior. There are 32 large angels mounted in the nave and sanctuary; six are 10 ½ feet tall, and 26 are 8 ½ feet tall.

Seraphim are the highest order or choir of angels. They are the angels who are attendants or guardians before God's throne. They praise God, calling, "Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts." They from the quartet at the Crossing, with trumpets blazing, they are the Angels of the Resurrection.

Cherubim are the second highest in the nine hierarchies or choirs of angels. The Old Testament does not reveal any evidence that the Jews considered them as intercessors or helpers of God. They were closely linked in God's glory. They are manlike in appearance and double-winged and are often portrayed as infants. They adorn the arches of the aisles on either side of the nave.

The Lower ranks of the nine hierarchies include: Thrones (Angels of pure Humility); Dominions (Angels of Leadership); Virtues (referred to as "the shining ones”); and Powers (Warrior Angels against evil). Archangels are depicted in several times in St. Anthony’s stain glass windows and statuary. They are generally taken to mean "chief or leading angel" (Jude 9; 1 Thes 4:16), they are the most frequently mentioned throughout the Bible. St. Michael Archangel, who is a princely Seraph. The Archangels have a unique role as God's messenger to the people at critical times (i.e. The Annunciation). Also, the angel Gabriel first appeared in the Old Testament in the prophesies of Daniel, he announced the prophecy of 70 weeks (Dn 9:21-27). He appeared to Zechariah to announce the birth of St. John the Baptist (Lk 1:11). It was also Gabriel, which proclaimed the Annunciation of Mary to be the mother of our Lord and Savior (Lk 1:26). Principalities and Angels complete the final tiers of the hierarchies, and are closest to the material world and human begins.

Angels also flank Castagnoli’s massive Stations of the Cross, said to be some of the largest in the world. The angels at each Station hold objects associated with the Passion of Christ. Their sorrowful demeanor bespeak of the agony of celestial choirs during Jesus’ sacrifice. Castagnoli sculptured the First Station (the original is in place) and from it cast the other thirteen.

Joseph Martinelli's Marbleizing of St. Anthony's Interior
The Interior “Marble” was created by a process called scagliola (“Skal-lee-o-la”) by Joseph Martinelli Studios of New York. Martinelli had created the same effects at some of the pavilions of the Pan-American Exposition of 1901, in Buffalo, NY. Incidentally, it was at the Exposition that electric lights made a sensation, used by the thousands to decorate the ornate buildings (the Electric Tower still stands today in Buffalo, a city landmark).

St. Anthony's Nave & Trancept Adorned With 5,500 Electric Lights
Clearly, the installation of electric lights in the church was meant to inspire. In an era when electric light was still a new phenomenon, its impact doubtless created a sense of awe and wonderment, even as it does today, almost a century later. Mr. Manny of Montreal, assisted by a local crew installed the lights into the decorative plaster.
Sam Whitlow, a New Bedford Electrical contractor, installed the massive electric switchboard in 1903. His grandson, Lou Whitlow, continued in the business and continue to assist the City of New Bedford in the installation of the electric lighting displays for the holiday season at Clasky-Common Park.
The black slate 400A switchboard was built by Trumbull Electric Co. It controls the 5 altars, 14 Stations of the Cross as well as the other power needs in the sacristy. The switchboard consists of 26 knife switches mounted on the slate board. Chief Inspector of Wires, Hugh Murray, saved the glass-enclosed switchboard in 1984. Murray recognized the switchboard as a rare example of the finest early electrical work and having carefully inspected it for safety declared that it continue in operation, due to its remarkable workmanship and quality of materials.

Nincheri's Stain Glass Windows ^ top

Guido Nincheri, opus 1952-1956

Born in Prato in Tuscany, the master stained-glass maker and decorator Guido Nincheri (1885-1973) immigrated to Montréal in 1914. In 1920, he set up his studio in Maisonneuve (at 1832 Pie-IX Boulevard), where he produced about 2,000 stained-glass windows. His studio is now closed but Matteo Martirano, one of his former students and friends, used it until 1997.

Considered to be one of the principal masters of stained glass in Canada, he earned many distinctions. On April 6 1933, Pope Pius XI appointed Nincheri Knight-Commander of the Order of Saint-Sylvester, thereby acknowledging him as one of the great artists of the Church. In 1972, he was named Knight of the Republic in his Italian homeland. Twenty years later, Nincheri was given the posthumous title of Builder of the City of Montreal.

Master of Stained Glass and Frescoes, born in Prato, a Tuscan city renowned for its textiles, Guido Nincheri studied painting, drawing and architecture at the Academy of Fine Arts in Florence. It was there that the master Adolfo De Carolis taught him the technique of fresco painting.

In 1914, Nincheri and his new wife, Guilia, embarked on a trip for Argentina to visit some former classmates. The outbreak of the First World War forced the couple to stay in Boston, their first port of call, where Nincheri obtained a contract to decorate the city's Opera House. Six months later, the Nincheri immigrated to Montreal.

Known as the city of a hundred church bells, Canada's metropolis was booming. Several new Catholic parishes, mostly French Canadian, were founded during this period. All the new church building created a great demand for the skills and reputation of European artists and artisans.

Nincheri's first contract in Montreal was the interior decoration of Saint-Viateur d'Outremont church. He also assisted the stained-glass artist Henri Perdriau (Angers, 1877 - Montreal, 1850), by drawing the paper designs for the transept windows, which illustrate the Immaculate Conception (left transept window) and the Eucharistic Conference of Montreal, in 1910 (right transept window). It seems likely that Perdriau was the one to introduce Guido Nincheri to the art of stained glass.

In 1921, Nincheri opened his own stained glass studio on the ground floor of 1832 Pie-IX Boulevard in space lent to him by his patrons, Marius and Oscar Dufresne, two pillars of Montreal's francophone bourgeoisie.

Nincheri devoted most of his long and productive career to the making of religious art and there are few known examples of his secular work, but two major exceptions stand out: the interior decoration of the Chateau Dufresne, built by the Dufresne brothers in the 1920's and the interior decoration of the Roger Williams Park Natural History Museum, in Providence Rhode Island where Nincheri lived towards the end of his life. Guido Nincheri died in Providence on March 1st, 1973, at the age of 87.

Appointed by Fr. Albert Berube in 1952, Guido Nincheri enhanced and greatly added to Castagnoli’s original plan. The Nincheri contributions were part of the first refurbishment of the church since it was dedicated 40 year earlier. The Nincheri windows in St. Anthony’s depict 14 of the 15 mysteries of the Rosary in the lower nave. The 15^th Mystery is depicted in the North Transept Triptych.

The Joyful Mysteries

Annunciation - The Angel Gabriel brings God's message to Mary.
Visitation - Mary visits her cousin Elizabeth.
Nativity - Jesus is born in Bethlehem.
Presentation - Jesus is presented in the temple.
Finding in the Temple - Jesus is found in the temple.

The Sorrowful Mysteries

Agony in the Garden - Jesus sweats blood.
Scourging at the Pillar.
Crowning with Thorns.
Carrying of the Cross.
Crucifixion - Jesus dies on the cross.

The Glorious Mysteries

The Resurrection - Jesus rises from the dead.
The Ascension - Jesus ascends into Heaven.
The Descent of the Holy Spirit upon the apostles.
The Assumption - The Virgin Mary is taken up to Heaven.
The Coronation - Mary is crowned Queen of Heaven and Earth (North Transept Triptych).

The 117 Stain glass windows in St. Anthony’s required 9000 pieces of glass and 2670 hours of work in Nincheri’s Montreal atelier.

The Choir loft windows depict St. Cecelia, patron saint of music and St. Gregory.

The North Transept triptych: Mary, Queen of Heaven, the 15^th Glorious Mystery.

Left Panel:	St. Dominic, St. Pious V, St. Maria Goretti. The heroic virgin-martyr St. Maria Goretti (1890-1902) was beatified by Pope Pius XII on April 27, 1947 and canonized by the same Supreme Pontiff on June 25, 1950. She is the patron saint of youth.
Right Panel:	St. Anthony, St. Therese and St Pious X.

The South Transept triptych: Christ the King (dedicated Christmas Day 1956). It depicts Christ in the center with Pope Pious XI beneath him, who established the feast day of Christ the King in 1925. On either side of alter stand Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli (Pope Pious XII, who declared St. Anthony a Doctor of the Church in 1946.

Left Panel:	Missionaries from around the world, Including Fr Jean de Brebeuf a martyr. Near him is Kateri Tekakwitha, the Iroquois girl beautified by the Church.
Right Panel:	St. Francis Xavier, a Jesuit who lived in Asia. And St. Pierre Chanel, who founded the Marist Order of Missionaries.

Nincheri's Pulpit
Castagnoli’s original pulpit wrapped around the southeast pillar at the transept crossing. However, time reveal that this situation made it difficult for the congregation to see and hear the homilist. Nincheri’s plan featured a gleaming white marble pulpit just within the sanctuary, west of the alter rail and to the congregation’s right of the main alter. Cut out of solid Carrara marble by the Del Bono del Atre, a prestigious atelier in Marno Italy, it weighed 10 tons. Installed in 1953, it cost $15,000.00. The pulpit’s façade features six niches in sienna marble, each with a statue of a saint carved in full. These Doctors of the Church are from left to right: St. John Chrysostom (Asia); St. Augustine (Africa); St. Anthony (Portugal/Italy); St. Albert the Great (Germany); St. Thomas Aquinas (Italy); St. Bernard (France).

Components of St. Anthonys' Architecture ^ top
Aisle:	Passageways of a church or cathedral, separated from the Nave by rows of pillars; generally running along the north and south sides.
Ambulatory:	A continuous isle, which wraps a circular structure or an apse at its base. Designed for use in Processions.
Apse:	A vaulted element in a church or cathedral that serves to terminate a semicircular Aisle or Chapel. The Apse, generally domed, will often form the Altar. The term is derived from the Medieval Latin: absis or apsis.
Antependium:	The decorated frontispiece of the alter (depicted: Da Vinci’s Last Supper in high relief by Castagnoli).
Chancel:	Altar space reserved for the clergy or choir, bordered by railings.
Chapter house:	The administrative center or Bishop's office, attached to a cathedral, traditionally organized for the overseeing of a cathedral's construction and maintenance.
Choir:	The area located between the Sanctuary and the Nave. By definition: the place where the psalms are sung. Loosely used to define the whole East end of a cathedral, and as a synonym for Chancel. Traditionally inaccessible to the public, reserved for the clergy or members of the choir.
Clerestory:	The upper area of the Nave, Transepts and Choir. The raised passage, above the Aisles, often windowed.
Crossing:	The central space of a church or cathedral. The intersection of the Nave, Transepts and Chancel.
Mandorla:	Where heaven and earth join as one.
Narthex:	A ceilinged porch or vestibule situated west of the Nave and Aisles. (Sometimes referred to as a Galilee.)
Nave:	The central area of the western branch of a cathedral, bordered by Aisles. The center of a church or cathedral, intended for seating of parishioners.
Oratory:	A small chapel or private room set aside for individual prayer.
Parvis:	An area situated before a church or cathedral, in some instances enclosed.
Porch:	The reception space situated at the entrance to a church or cathedral.
Presbytery (Sanctuary):	The area east of the Choir that contains or features the High Altar. The area of a church or cathedral reserved for the clergy.
Predella:	A step on which the alter is placed; also a sculpture under the alter.
Retrochoir:	The space situated directly to the rear of the altar in a church or cathedral.
Sacristy:	The secure storing chamber for holy relics and sacred vestments.
Spire:	A tapering, often elegant, structure set atop a tower. In certain instances, the tower itself has been designed as a spire. On churches, smaller scale spires are often referred to as Steeples.
Transepts:	The north and south projecting extensions of a Cruciform style church or cathedral, crossing at right angles to the greater length.
Triforium:	A walled passageway opening with arcades, which run along and above the Nave, below the Clerestory.

Casavant Freres Organ Installed in 1912 ^ top
Casavant Freres continues to build some of the world’s greatest pipe organs in St. Hyacinthe, Québec. The Casavent Organ at St. Anthony’s is massive: 4 keyboards of 61 notes each; 56 stops; 30 couplers.
	Michel Labens (1921-1999) Michel Labens was the organist from 1953 to 1999. He graduated with honors from the Royal Institute For the Blind at Brussels and studied music at Maline, Belgium. He immigrated to New Bedford in1953, recommended for appointment as Choirmaster at Saint Anthony’s. Mr. Labens was a master organist in the finest European tradition. His expertise in 19th Century French liturgical music was well know in the United States and Canada. He also instructed generations of New Bedford students in piano, organ and violin. He died October 21, 1999.
In 1956, the Spire was illuminated at night, as its enormous height posed a risk for incoming aircraft at the nearby Municipal airport. But the lighting added to the Church’s visibility as one of New Bedford’s greatest landmarks.
In 1963, Monsignor Berube had installed the Schulmerich Marian Carillon, an electronic device that replicated the tones of ten great bells and amplified via speakers in the belfry. This solution alleviated the fear that very tall steeple might not bear the weight of a traditional bronze carillon.
In 1982, Father Chabot invited Danford “Barrie” Lee to do restoration work in the church, primarily on the Stations of the Cross. Lee died in 1990 and the work remained incomplete. It was re-commenced under the direction of Rev. Monsignor Edmond R. Levesque, appointed as pastor in 1990 by Bishop Daniel Cronin.

Final Thoughts ^ top

French-Canadians came to the New Bedford area in great numbers between 1860 and 1930 to work in the booming textile mills. Fiercely proud of their religious and cultural traditions, these “working people of St. Antoine” made sure the spire of their church would be taller than any factory smoke stack under which they toiled. St. Anthony’s was at once a dramatic statement to the entire community at-large that they had taken their place in the city, bringing to and enriching it with their immense faith, heritage and tradition.

Today, though fewer parishioners at St. Anthony’s are of French-Canadian heritage, the parish continues to persevere under the tireless leadership of Rev. Monsignor Edmond R. Levesque. Rev. Christopher Gomes, OFM Conv., assists. Many people of Portuguese heritage now worship at St. Anthony’s. Indeed, this Church, named in honor of the patron saint of Lisbon, inspires them as it did the working families who sacrificed to build it.

In a 1909 article, the Standard-Times summed up this great church, calling St. Anthony of Padua… “an architectural prayer, by its very loveliness an offering of praise to God.”

Sources ^ top

Standard-Times Archives

Bishop James Cassidy, History of the Diocese of Fall River, Fall River, Mass. 1931.

Doris C. Quinton and Jean Weaver Swiszcz, History of St. Anthony of Padua Church, A Parish History, New Bedford: Spinner Publications, Inc., 1996.

Notice Historique; Saint Antoine de New Bedford, Mass., Montreal, Canada: Imprimerie du Messager, 1913.

Ellis, Leonard B. History of New Bedford and Its Vicinity, Syracuse, N.Y.: D. Mason and Co., 1892.