Exciting News for SPC Alumni

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The interior altar and nave of the new St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church currently being built in Northern Lake County, along with marble statues, pews, and other interior detail will come from our beloved, St. Peter Canisius. The exterior limestone facade, towers and architectural detail will come from the shuttered St. John of God Roman Catholic Church located at 1234 W. 52nd St., Chicago.

In the fall of 2010 Cardinal George officiated at the blessing and laying of the cornerstone at St. Raphael the Archangel located at 40000 North U.S. Highway 45, Old Mill Creek, IL 60046. This is the first new parish in the Chicago Archdiocese since 1999.

How nostalgic and wonderful will this be for all former parishioners and alumni of Saint Peter Canisius and St. John of God.

The idea to salvage the two beleaguered churches began in 2008 when the church began talks with Chicago Cardinal Francis George about transplanting a closed city church to Lake County for reuse. Built in 1918 for a predominantly Polish congregation, the twin-towered St. John of God cuts a striking figure across from Sherman Park in the New City neighborhood. It has been closed since 1990. St. Peter Canisius, was built in 1932 and as many of us know, it closed in 2007. Under the plan, the entire front of St. John of God, through the narthex and the entire exterior would be reused. A new interior using the marble altar, sanctuary detailing, statues, and pews of St. Peter Canisius would be built inside the church. In addition, eventually the church organ will have a familiar sound. It will be the old Austin Opus 558 that was removed from Chicago’s Medinah Temple when it was converted into a Bloomingdale home store. However, it might take six years to install this magnificent organ.

The new but old St Raphael’s will be completed in spring of 2012. The church's pastor, the Rev. John Jamnicky has welcomed all former parishners and alumni from both parishes to visit and say hello. Until the new church is built, services are being conducted from a renovated barn on the property that has been converted to a very nice temporary church. It is located on Route 173, a half-mile east of Route 45 in Antioch, IL. The following is St. Raphael’s website. Also, the following two web addresses are to video presentations that tell the story about St. Raphael the Archangel Catholic Church. The first shows the dedication of St. Raphael. It has some wonderful video presentations of the interior and exterior of St. Peter Canisius. The pictures of the altar, religious statues, and stained glass windows are marvelous.

The original cornerstone of St. John of God will have a prominent place on the exterior of the new church. Although not in the plans, how wonderful it would be if the cornerstone of St. Peter Canisius would be placed in the interior of this new church.

The price to build St Raphael’s is $10,000,000. To deconstruct the old and reconstruct it with the new is a great challenge. If you can help Father Jamnicky financially with this undertaking, please do so. You can send donations or pledges to:

• Rev. John Jamnicky
• St. Raphael the Archangel,
• 40000 North U.S. Highway 45
• Old Mill Creek, IL 60046-7464
• Phone: 847 395 3474
• E-Mail: rectory@straphaelcatholic.org

Finally, with the opening of the church in spring 2012, it would be a great idea to coordinate a SPC gathering. Sunday mass at St. Raphael’s and a picnic in Lake County could be fun. Hopefully, a group of SPC alumni will volunteer to organize such an event.