Our Lady of Lourdes celebrates 100 years as faith community

On Trinity Sunday, June 4, the parish community of Our Lady of Lourdes, Whitehouse Station, celebrated its 100th Anniversary. The celebration was the culmination of 18 months of preparation and began with Mass and included a parish picnic.

Bishop James F. Checchio was the principal celebrant and homilist for the Mass.  Father Leonard F. A. Rusay, pastor; Father Maurice T. Carlton, in residence, and Father Daniel Sloan, a retired priest of the diocese, were concelebrants.

In his homily, the Bishop stated, “Each of us have a very fundamental decision to make. Are we as Catholic Christians going to live our lives in faith and loving trust in our Heavenly Father?” 

Noting that the day was the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, the Bishop said it was one of the mysteries of our faith that is not easy to explain and requires us to trust. But, “we believe it because Jesus has revealed it to us. Our commitment to follow Him requires an act of faith,” Bishop Checchio said.

“Sometimes we are hesitant to take an action or take on a responsibility unless we understand how and what will be asked of us. But in regard to faith that attitude can cause us to miss many opportunities, because often we don’t know what will be asked of us.  Jesus asks us to trust in Him,” he stressed.

During the homily the Bishop paid tribute to the generations of parishioners who have contributed over the years to make Our Lady of Lourdes what it is today, a faith community of 1700 families. The parish was erected by the Diocese of Trenton on June 19, 1923.  It was intended to meet the spiritual and sacramental needs of the immigrant families that had moved into the area at the beginning of the 20th Century.

An initial census of the parish showed 150 families, half were Polish, along with a mix of Italian, Irish and German parishioners.  The first two pastors appointed by the diocese to the parish were Polish and Mass was offered in both Polish and English for 26 years.

By 1950 the diocese felt that the second generation of Polish parishioners at that time would be English speaking and a non-Polish speaking pastor was appointed.  However provisions were made to provide for the spiritual and sacramental needs of the members of the community who were more comfortable in Polish.

In 1954 a grotto for Our Lady of Lourdes was constructed on the northwest boundary of the parish. It depicts the apparitions of the parish’s patron saint as she appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in 1858 at Lourdes, France.

The initial church was described as the, “the epitome of a simple country church.” That building and a parish hall had served the need of the parish for years. By the 1970’s it became evident that the original facility could not meet the needs of a growing parish population.

So in 1980, on the day before the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, ground was broken for a new church to accommodate 700 worshippers. This Church was dedicated on April 15, 1981.

In preparation for the parish’s diamond jubilee in 1997 some restoration and renovation of the interior of the church building was necessary and a pipe organ was installed.

At the end of the anniversary Mass, Father Rusay thanked Bishop Checchio for his presence and taking part in the anniversary celebration.  He also thanked all of the parishioners who worked so hard over the months of preparation for that day, “the joyful Gala, the prayerful Mass, and the spectacular picnic would never have happened without them,” he said.

He thanked the concelebrants, the deacons, severs, choir and everyone who planned and participated in the liturgy, and made special mention of Ann dePaolo, the longest living parishioner.

In reflecting on her 95 years at the parish, DePaolo stated that Our Lady of Lourdes has been, a blessing for her and her family. She remembers when the Mass was celebrated in Polish. She was baptized, made her first Communion, received Confirmation and was married there. She feels that, “the parish has been her home all those years.”

After Mass the congregation gathered outside under tents set up on the parish grounds and after grace was said, a bell that was blessed in 1947 for the original church tower rang out to announce the start of the parish picnic. The picnic was a true feast, with all the requisite fare: hamburgers, hot dogs, salads, soft drinks and dessert along with wonderful conversations and community.

At the end of the day the consensus of the community was summed up by long time parishioners, Diana and Don Renne, when they said, “That was some celebration!”