St. Joseph Oratory in Detroit named Archdiocesan Shrine
Contact: Holly Fournier
(313) 237-5802
fournier.holly@aod.org
March 8, 2020
St. Joseph Oratory in Detroit named Archdiocesan Shrine
March 8, 2020 – Detroit Archbishop Allen H. Vigneron announced today that he has granted the title of Archdiocesan Shrine to St. Joseph Oratory, in recognition of the parish’s service as a popular place of pilgrimage and its abundant availability of the sacraments. The parish, located at 1828 Jay Street in Detroit, has since 2016 been under the spiritual and pastoral care of the Canons of the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign Priest (“the Institute”), a society of apostolic life founded in 1990 with a special focus on the celebration of the Extraordinary Form of the Latin Rite.
“Over the ages, countless men and women have flocked to St. Joseph – the patron of fathers, workers, and of the whole church – and found him to be a constant and reliable friend and protector,” Archbishop Vigneron said. “With this designation, we recognize that the St. Joseph Shrine, continuing its vibrant renewal under the pastoral care of the Canons of the Institute, will be a sacred place of pilgrimage, a source of deep devotion to St. Joseph, and a welcoming place of rich liturgical life for all the faithful.”
St. Joseph Shrine was founded in 1855 as a German Catholic parish. The current church building was completed in 1873 and was listed in 1972 on the National Register of Historic Places, deemed “of national importance” in-part because of its beautiful stained glass. Prior to the arrival of the Institute, St. Joseph was merged with Midtown’s Sweetest Heart of Mary and St. Josephat churches as part of the Mother of Divine Mercy Parish.
The arrival of the Institute in 2016 prompted the re-establishment of St. Joseph as its own parish, renamed St. Joseph Oratory to highlight the community’s particular dedication to prayer and availability of the sacraments. The very next year, the community embarked on an ongoing Historic Renewal campaign to restore the church, grow the parish community, and contribute to the revival of Detroit. Now in the third year of the project, the parish last year celebrated the complete, historically accurate restoration of its iconic steeple and bell tower.
“We are truly grateful to Archbishop Vigneron for acknowledging the rich liturgical life of our community by officially establishing it as St. Joseph Shrine. This honor reflects the everyday spiritual reality of this church, a destination site and sacred place for all those seeking the traditional Mass, abundant sacraments, and regular devotions to St. Joseph, patron of our parish and entire Church,” said Canon Michael Stein, Rector of St. Joseph Shrine. “Naming this church an archdiocesan Shrine to St. Joseph helps promote an open-door welcome to all the faithful, visitors, and pilgrims from both near and afar, while continuing to foster an ever-growing parish life for our community.”
St. Joseph Shrine is now one of two shrines encompassing an entire campus in the Archdiocese of Detroit, along with Shrine of the Little Flower Basilica in Royal Oak, which was designated in 1998 by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and thus will continue to hold a preeminent place for us in the Archdiocese of Detroit. The designation of additional shrines will only serve to increase the variety of devotional pilgrimages the faithful can now make in the Archdiocese. In addition to these two campus shrines, there are a number of smaller shrines in locations throughout the Archdiocese, including a Shrine to St. Anne inside the Basilica of Ste. Anne de Detroit and a Shrine to Pope St. John Paul II within Our Lady of Orchard Lake Chapel.
To mark St. Joseph’s designation as an archdiocesan shrine, Archbishop Vigneron will publicly read his decree inside the church at 5 p.m. March 19, the Feast of St. Joseph. Following his proclamation, the Archbishop will lead the parish, pilgrims, and all the faithful in an annual St. Joseph Day procession through the surrounding Eastern Market neighborhood. The Shrine will then celebrate a 7 p.m. Solemn High Mass after the procession. Beginning March 11 and leading up to St. Joseph Day, the faithful are invited to join the St. Joseph Shrine community in a nine-day, solemn novena to St Joseph, including themed homilies and a prayer to the beloved saint.
St. Joseph Shrine has an actively growing membership of 220 registered families and also serves as a “second home” parish to more than 1,200 households seeking and supporting the traditional Mass. The parish offers two Masses each Sunday as well as daily Mass Monday through Saturday, all in the Extraordinary Form. Mass at St. Joseph Shrine this weekend is Sunday at 9 a.m. (Low Mass) and 11 a.m. (High Mass), followed by 6 p.m. Vespers and Benediction.
The parish is named for St. Joseph, the foster-father of Jesus Christ and spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Among his many patronages, St. Joseph is considered the patron saint of workers, which has historically connected the parish to the many businesses of nearby Eastern Market.
The Archdiocese of Detroit has 1.1 million Catholics in 217 parishes across Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe, St. Clair and Lapeer counties.
Notes to media:
- Canon Michael Stein, Rector of St. Joseph Shrine, is available for interviews about this new designation. For more information or to arrange an interview, please contact Holly Fournier, media and public relations manager, at (313) 237-5802 or fournier.holly@aod.org
- Archbishop Vigneron also shared the news in a letter to the faithful, which can be viewed here.
- More information about St. Joseph Shrine is available online at StJosephShrineD.org and HistoricRenewal.com. The Shrine has an active social media presence @StJosephShrineD on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
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