Merger of St. Clare of Assisi and St. Francis Xavier parishes

Effective today, September 1, 2018, is the merger of two parishes less than a half-mile apart on Hone and Haight Avenues in the Morris Park section of The Bronx. The records held at St. Francis Xavier parish will be moved to the rectory of St. Clare of Assisi. The merger is somewhat unusual because the territorial parish is St. Francis Xavier, which will set the boundaries, while St. Clare of Assisi is a personal parish (read: national or Italian). Judging from the bulletins, attendance and revenue at St. Clare may be a bit stronger than at St. Francis Xavier, but both parishes have schools. Until today, the pastor of St. Francis was also the administrator of St. Clare, so this merger has been in the works. Neither church will be closed.
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The merger decree is linked HERE.
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My photos from St. Clare are HERE.
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My photos from St. Francis Xavier are HERE.

Our Lady of Solace, Morris Park Avenue, Van Nest

The church faces busy Morris Park Avenue. To the right is the intersection with Holland Avenue.

The parish schools of Our Lady of Solace parish and St. Dominic have closed. The religious education program of both parishes is apparently conducted in this building at the corner of Morris Park Avenue and Holland Avenue.
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See page 481 for the establishment of Our Lady of Solace in 1903. The rectory address is 731 Morris Park Ave., Bronx NY 10462, telephone 718-863-3282. Morris Park was the name of nearby race track, and Van Nest a nearby railroad station that gave its name to a housing subdivision west of Morris Park. The present church was dedicated in 1929. For years, the Sisters of the Presentation staffed the parish school.
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In 2023, the parish of Our Lady of Solace is staffed by Misioneros Idente, also known as Institute Id of Christ.

St Clare, Rhinelander Ave., Morris Park

Effective September 1, 2018, the records of the parish of St. Francis Xavier will be brought to this parish.  The merger is effective today, and both churches will remain in use.
Clicking on any photo enlarges it.
In the above photo, the church and school are seen on Rhinelander Avenue. The one-way-southbound street to the left is Paulding Avenue. To the right of the school is Hone Avenue, one-way-northbound.
An outdoor statue of St. Clare faces Paulding Avenue. For a biography, click here.
Note that the craftsmen who built this church did not present us with a flat brick wall, but they knew how to ornament it with designs.


See page 484 for the 1929 creation of the Italian parish of St Clare of Assisi at Paulding and Rhinelander Avenue, Morris Park or Williamsbridge. The present church dates from 1931. The parish website is linked here. The rectory address is 1918 Paulding Ave., Bronx NY 10462, and the phone number is 718-863-8974.
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The parish school is located at 1911 Hone Avenue, Bronx NY 10461. The school and rectory are back-to-back on parallel avenues (Hone and Paulding), but they seem to be in different zip codes or post office branches. With more than 500 students, the school appears to have two sections per grade.
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St Francis Xavier, Van Nest Ave., Morris Park

See 484 and 486 for St Francis Xavier, founded in Morris Park in 1928. The parish patron, Francis Xavier, was born in Spain in 1506. He became one of the first Jesuits and a missionary to India and Japan, dying on route to China in 1552. Brief biographies of St. Francis Xavier are linked here and here.
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The present church at Lurting and Van Nest Avenues dates from 1951. The parish has several substantial buildings, including what appear to be two schools. A convent was refurbished for the Franciscan sisters sponsored by Fr. Benedict Groeschel. The rectory address is 1703 Lurting Ave., Bronx NY 10461, telephone 718-892-3330. The parish website is linked here. Thanks to Tom, who provided the link.
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The parish school is at 1711 Haight Avenue, telephone 718-863-0531. With about 370 students, it appears that some grades have two sections, other grades one.
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Lurting Avenue and some parallel avenues to the west carry the names of former mayors of New York City. According to "History in Asphalt" by John McNamara, Robert Lurting was mayor from 1726 to 1735. Stephan Haight was a local landowner.