I was
glad
when
they said
to me,
"Let us
go up
to the
house
of the
LORD."
Psalm 122:1
glad
when
they said
to me,
"Let us
go up
to the
house
of the
LORD."
Psalm 122:1
History of Christ Church.
Christ Church was the oldest church in Joliet until its closing on January 11, 2004. On May 15, 1835 at a meeting held in the home of Dr. A.W. Bowen with eight people in attendance, Bishop Chase celebrated the Holy Eucharist and Articles of Association were drafted. The Bishop formally named the new missionary station "The Wardens and Vestrymen of Christ Church, Joliet in the diocese of Illinois." It was the sixth Episcopal parish in the state. Dr. Bowen provided two lots for the eventual construction of a church edifice.
Over the next fifty years, two church buildings were constructed at the corner of Van Buren and Joliet St. The first, a wooden structure constructed in 1855 under the leadership of Dr. James Locke, rector, was razed in the mid 1880's for the construction of the present Joliet limestone church building and rectory. The new structures were consecrated by Bishop McLaren while Rev. J.H. White was rector. The facilities were expanded in 1926 with the addition of the St. Margaret's Chapel and Sexton's quarters.
In 1935, Christ Church celebrated its Centennial. Included in the activities was the publication of a booklet commemorating the first one hundred years, They Have Builded Him An Altar, which lists the rectors' names for the first one hundred years as "Officiating Clergymen
Unfortunately, most of the archival materials are no longer in existence. Efforts are underway to recover primary source materials, memories and reflections from former members of the parish beginning where They Builded Him an Altar leaves off, the period from 1935 until the present.
Despite its longevity, Christ Church survived numerous crises that threatened its continuity. From the beginning, Christ Church dealt with economic insufficiencies. Start of the initial building was delayed nearly twenty years from the donation of two lots in 1837. The first wooden church was undertaken in 1856 for the sum of $7000. A four-room rectory had been built on the site in 1940.
In 1939 The Rev. A. H. Cornish received $500 for the coming year. Following the untimely death of The Rev. W. W. Bostwick, Christ Church and St. John's Lockport agreed to a joint call of The Rev. Charles Todd, until the following year when the two missions again engaged separate clergy. By 1852, the parish supported the part time call of Rev. Samuel D. Pulford for a sum of $200 per year. During the years of 1848 and 49, the parish experienced a crisis of a different kind - cholera, leaving only seven surviving members of the parish. Vestry meetings were suspended.
The unstable currency and banking situation in 1859 lost the parish's meager savings of $270. The Rev. John Wilkinson requested that his stipend be reduced from $1200 to $800 for the year. The parish recovered, however, and was able to add needed additional seating in two transepts additions to the building. Christ Church provided clergy for start up congregations in Morris and Manhattan, and started its first mission chapel on the corner of Parks Avenue and Ohio Street in a new addition to Joliet.
"The Rev. John Hazen White of Saybrook, Connecticut, accepted a call, January 17, 1881 and was invested by the Bishop through the service of 'Institution.'
With his coming and due to his energetic and persistent efforts, untiring zeal, and failure to weaken under, any and all discouragements, the third era of prosperity and progress of the parish began. In addition to the qualification fitting him for clerical duties, he has a clear and comprehensive view of Church financiering." They Have Builded Him and Altar, booklet without page numbers
Rev. White established a parish school, taught by Mr. S. C. Sanborn, who was "a most eccentric disciplinarian, being an invalid and subject to 'moods.'" (ibid) What would today be called a capital campaign was begun with the solicitation of "subscriptions" for the construction of a new church. The Joliet limestone church building pictured on the cover of this study was consecrated on January 25, 1887. The rectory was completed the following year. Rev. White resigned March 1, 1893 to serve for many years in Minnesota before being elected Bishop of Northern Indiana.
Under the leadership of The Rev. T. DeWitt Tanner, who was to serve for twenty one years, the parish once again experienced a renewal. The church and rectory were remodeled and the parish house was raised into a two story structure and the sexton's quarters were built. This work was completed and celebrated on January 19, 1926.
Following the resignation of Fr. Tanner after the death of his wife, The Rev. Joseph S. Minnis was called as rector to
"a parish disheartened and discouraged with a heavy debt, and the country in the midst of the worst depression ever known; but youth is ever hopeful and this one could not only preach splendid sermons, but had the gift for organization, and soon the old activities began to awaken. Still there was something lacking, the closed Rectory seemed stern and forbidding as one passed its doors (for Father Minnis had taken quarters elsewhere). The women, especially, missed the cheering presence of one who had been a mother adviser to them. In the winter the Rector's mother came. This helped greatly, but she shared her time with the rest of her family in Chicago Heights, so it was not altogether a satisfactory arrangement." A Short History of Christ Church, unpublished manuscript, Edburg.
In 1933 Fr. Minnis married a daughter of the parish, Katherine Abell, and the rectory became once again, a vital force in parish life.
During the depression four banks failed in Joliet, and the parish could not reduce its debt, and nearly defaulted on the interest payments. Under the savvy leadership of George P. Lloyd, Sr. Warden, "personal notes were financed by various members of the parish, and the church was saved. The burning of the mortgage took place in 1951."
Fr. Bennison was an active man whose years at Christ Church brought stability. Under his leadership the mortgage was burned. As though to celebrate the new life and financial freedom in the parish a mission was started on what was then the far western edge of Joliet, St. Edward's Chapel St. Edward the Martyr. Fr. Bennison was later to become Bishop of Western Michigan.
In Father People's tenure, the parish experienced on-going vitality. The men were home from the war, and families and their children returned to church. It was a time of activity at the church: boy scouts occupied a permanent space set aside for their use including a pistol range in the undercroft; the girl's friendly society had space next to the scout's room; a thrift shop under the leadership of the women operated out of the basement and provided affordable clothing to those in need; different groups existed to support the liturgy notably a men's choir, children's choir, altar guild, and an acolyte program involving over 30 boys.
Fr. Peoples, an avant-garde bachelor and retired air force chaplain, entertained in the rectory his many friends, and monthly invited a group of parishioners for cocktails and dinner. He was sought after to do house blessings. Fr. Peoples had one of the first new Fords, a red coupe, and drove around town in a nice sport shirt with the top down and some thought that was pretty loud for a priest. He was known and recognized throughout the city. He organized gatherings for young adults in the parish hall, and he worked closely with the diocese, especially with Bishop Burrill.
In 1955 several men of the parish initiated a drive to renovate the parish hall and funded it through Sunday morning pancake breakfasts which they prepared and served themselves. Their efforts resulted in a modernized kitchen and a deeper sense of connection among the leadership of the parish.
The foresight of some of these men extended to financial planning. A fund was started to provide interest income to supplement the operating budget. For a parish that had faced bankruptcy more than once, it was a relief to have an endowment that eventually exceeded a half of a million dollars.
As had been the case in many of the traditional denominations, church attendance began to decline. In the twelve years following Fr. Seabrook's resignation in 1992, the parish had a rector for less than two years, Fr. St. Amore. Two interim priests, Fr. Campbell and Fr. Nestrock, and Fr. Caldwell as permanent supply served the parish during these years. Several discussions were had over the years with neighboring parishes about shared ministry or merger. As early as 1991 Fr. Seabrook wrote a letter to the other three Episcopal parishes in the Joliet cluster urging them to plan for the future, or face the closing of one or more of the parishes.
"I am writing this letter to the leadership of the Episcopal Church here in Will County in order to express my urgent concern about our future… We have four stations in our county…. We also have mission opportunities in Shorewood, Homer Township and in Plainfield. As far as our four stations are concerned, we do have problems, all of us, some slight but many serious. We here at Christ Church for instance, have an enormous physical plant, which we are maintaining. But we can clearly foresee the inevitable moment when a major repair job will quite simply be beyond our financial means…and we - or I - are failing in efforts at parish growth.
"Now there is an old saying that those who don't hang together will hang separately; that is our danger. I am sure that in a few years the pattern of four stations with four clergy will be simply impossible, for financial and other reasons… It is quite certain that unless we here, now, seriously begin to make plans for our future, that future will be imposed upon us by (the diocese)." Seabrook, signed letter dated June 14, 1991.
In late 2002, declining numbers and increasing financial dependence on withdrawal of funds from the endowment fund to meet operating expenses brought representatives of the diocese, Christ Church Vestry, and St. Edward's vestry into conversation. After a year of collaborative ministry, the two parishes merged. The last services were celebrated at Christ Church on January 11, 2004.
Christ Church was the oldest church in Joliet until its closing on January 11, 2004. On May 15, 1835 at a meeting held in the home of Dr. A.W. Bowen with eight people in attendance, Bishop Chase celebrated the Holy Eucharist and Articles of Association were drafted. The Bishop formally named the new missionary station "The Wardens and Vestrymen of Christ Church, Joliet in the diocese of Illinois." It was the sixth Episcopal parish in the state. Dr. Bowen provided two lots for the eventual construction of a church edifice.
Over the next fifty years, two church buildings were constructed at the corner of Van Buren and Joliet St. The first, a wooden structure constructed in 1855 under the leadership of Dr. James Locke, rector, was razed in the mid 1880's for the construction of the present Joliet limestone church building and rectory. The new structures were consecrated by Bishop McLaren while Rev. J.H. White was rector. The facilities were expanded in 1926 with the addition of the St. Margaret's Chapel and Sexton's quarters.
In 1935, Christ Church celebrated its Centennial. Included in the activities was the publication of a booklet commemorating the first one hundred years, They Have Builded Him An Altar, which lists the rectors' names for the first one hundred years as "Officiating Clergymen
Unfortunately, most of the archival materials are no longer in existence. Efforts are underway to recover primary source materials, memories and reflections from former members of the parish beginning where They Builded Him an Altar leaves off, the period from 1935 until the present.
Despite its longevity, Christ Church survived numerous crises that threatened its continuity. From the beginning, Christ Church dealt with economic insufficiencies. Start of the initial building was delayed nearly twenty years from the donation of two lots in 1837. The first wooden church was undertaken in 1856 for the sum of $7000. A four-room rectory had been built on the site in 1940.
In 1939 The Rev. A. H. Cornish received $500 for the coming year. Following the untimely death of The Rev. W. W. Bostwick, Christ Church and St. John's Lockport agreed to a joint call of The Rev. Charles Todd, until the following year when the two missions again engaged separate clergy. By 1852, the parish supported the part time call of Rev. Samuel D. Pulford for a sum of $200 per year. During the years of 1848 and 49, the parish experienced a crisis of a different kind - cholera, leaving only seven surviving members of the parish. Vestry meetings were suspended.
The unstable currency and banking situation in 1859 lost the parish's meager savings of $270. The Rev. John Wilkinson requested that his stipend be reduced from $1200 to $800 for the year. The parish recovered, however, and was able to add needed additional seating in two transepts additions to the building. Christ Church provided clergy for start up congregations in Morris and Manhattan, and started its first mission chapel on the corner of Parks Avenue and Ohio Street in a new addition to Joliet.
"The Rev. John Hazen White of Saybrook, Connecticut, accepted a call, January 17, 1881 and was invested by the Bishop through the service of 'Institution.'
With his coming and due to his energetic and persistent efforts, untiring zeal, and failure to weaken under, any and all discouragements, the third era of prosperity and progress of the parish began. In addition to the qualification fitting him for clerical duties, he has a clear and comprehensive view of Church financiering." They Have Builded Him and Altar, booklet without page numbers
Rev. White established a parish school, taught by Mr. S. C. Sanborn, who was "a most eccentric disciplinarian, being an invalid and subject to 'moods.'" (ibid) What would today be called a capital campaign was begun with the solicitation of "subscriptions" for the construction of a new church. The Joliet limestone church building pictured on the cover of this study was consecrated on January 25, 1887. The rectory was completed the following year. Rev. White resigned March 1, 1893 to serve for many years in Minnesota before being elected Bishop of Northern Indiana.
Under the leadership of The Rev. T. DeWitt Tanner, who was to serve for twenty one years, the parish once again experienced a renewal. The church and rectory were remodeled and the parish house was raised into a two story structure and the sexton's quarters were built. This work was completed and celebrated on January 19, 1926.
Following the resignation of Fr. Tanner after the death of his wife, The Rev. Joseph S. Minnis was called as rector to
"a parish disheartened and discouraged with a heavy debt, and the country in the midst of the worst depression ever known; but youth is ever hopeful and this one could not only preach splendid sermons, but had the gift for organization, and soon the old activities began to awaken. Still there was something lacking, the closed Rectory seemed stern and forbidding as one passed its doors (for Father Minnis had taken quarters elsewhere). The women, especially, missed the cheering presence of one who had been a mother adviser to them. In the winter the Rector's mother came. This helped greatly, but she shared her time with the rest of her family in Chicago Heights, so it was not altogether a satisfactory arrangement." A Short History of Christ Church, unpublished manuscript, Edburg.
In 1933 Fr. Minnis married a daughter of the parish, Katherine Abell, and the rectory became once again, a vital force in parish life.
During the depression four banks failed in Joliet, and the parish could not reduce its debt, and nearly defaulted on the interest payments. Under the savvy leadership of George P. Lloyd, Sr. Warden, "personal notes were financed by various members of the parish, and the church was saved. The burning of the mortgage took place in 1951."
Fr. Bennison was an active man whose years at Christ Church brought stability. Under his leadership the mortgage was burned. As though to celebrate the new life and financial freedom in the parish a mission was started on what was then the far western edge of Joliet, St. Edward's Chapel St. Edward the Martyr. Fr. Bennison was later to become Bishop of Western Michigan.
In Father People's tenure, the parish experienced on-going vitality. The men were home from the war, and families and their children returned to church. It was a time of activity at the church: boy scouts occupied a permanent space set aside for their use including a pistol range in the undercroft; the girl's friendly society had space next to the scout's room; a thrift shop under the leadership of the women operated out of the basement and provided affordable clothing to those in need; different groups existed to support the liturgy notably a men's choir, children's choir, altar guild, and an acolyte program involving over 30 boys.
Fr. Peoples, an avant-garde bachelor and retired air force chaplain, entertained in the rectory his many friends, and monthly invited a group of parishioners for cocktails and dinner. He was sought after to do house blessings. Fr. Peoples had one of the first new Fords, a red coupe, and drove around town in a nice sport shirt with the top down and some thought that was pretty loud for a priest. He was known and recognized throughout the city. He organized gatherings for young adults in the parish hall, and he worked closely with the diocese, especially with Bishop Burrill.
In 1955 several men of the parish initiated a drive to renovate the parish hall and funded it through Sunday morning pancake breakfasts which they prepared and served themselves. Their efforts resulted in a modernized kitchen and a deeper sense of connection among the leadership of the parish.
The foresight of some of these men extended to financial planning. A fund was started to provide interest income to supplement the operating budget. For a parish that had faced bankruptcy more than once, it was a relief to have an endowment that eventually exceeded a half of a million dollars.
As had been the case in many of the traditional denominations, church attendance began to decline. In the twelve years following Fr. Seabrook's resignation in 1992, the parish had a rector for less than two years, Fr. St. Amore. Two interim priests, Fr. Campbell and Fr. Nestrock, and Fr. Caldwell as permanent supply served the parish during these years. Several discussions were had over the years with neighboring parishes about shared ministry or merger. As early as 1991 Fr. Seabrook wrote a letter to the other three Episcopal parishes in the Joliet cluster urging them to plan for the future, or face the closing of one or more of the parishes.
"I am writing this letter to the leadership of the Episcopal Church here in Will County in order to express my urgent concern about our future… We have four stations in our county…. We also have mission opportunities in Shorewood, Homer Township and in Plainfield. As far as our four stations are concerned, we do have problems, all of us, some slight but many serious. We here at Christ Church for instance, have an enormous physical plant, which we are maintaining. But we can clearly foresee the inevitable moment when a major repair job will quite simply be beyond our financial means…and we - or I - are failing in efforts at parish growth.
"Now there is an old saying that those who don't hang together will hang separately; that is our danger. I am sure that in a few years the pattern of four stations with four clergy will be simply impossible, for financial and other reasons… It is quite certain that unless we here, now, seriously begin to make plans for our future, that future will be imposed upon us by (the diocese)." Seabrook, signed letter dated June 14, 1991.
In late 2002, declining numbers and increasing financial dependence on withdrawal of funds from the endowment fund to meet operating expenses brought representatives of the diocese, Christ Church Vestry, and St. Edward's vestry into conversation. After a year of collaborative ministry, the two parishes merged. The last services were celebrated at Christ Church on January 11, 2004.
All are Welcome to Belong and Become
Worship & Events
Service
Looking for a
Spiritual Home
Spiritual Home
Belong & Become
Episcopal Beliefs
Episcopal Practices
Finding Us
Core Values
Christ Campus
Spiritual Center
Spiritual Center
Who We Are
Journey of Faith
Gallery
