About Our Lady of the Skies Chapel @ JFK Airport · Jamaica, New York
Our Lady of the Skies Chapel is the Catholic chaplaincy serving New York's John F. Kennedy International Airport, located pre-security on the 4th floor (Departure Level) of Terminal 4 in Jamaica, Queens. Operated under the Diocese of Brooklyn, it ministers to the roughly 50,000 airport employees and more than 70 million annual passengers who pass through JFK and LaGuardia, offering weekday and Sunday Mass, the sacraments, and pastoral care to travelers, airline crews, and workers. A wooden statue of the Virgin Mary perched on an airplane propeller gives the small chapel its distinctive character, and the Catholic Guild of JFK — founded in 1952 — sustains the ministry through prayer, fundraising, and an annual luncheon.
- Established
- 1955
- Patron
- Our Lady of the Skies (the Blessed Virgin Mary)
- Rector
- Fr. Cezariusz Jastrzębski (Chaplain; also pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Jamaica)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Brooklyn
Why belong here
Our Lady of the Skies is the spiritual heart of one of the world's busiest airports — a place where airline crews, ground staff, customs officers, and travelers from every nation can pause, pray, and find Christ in the rush of arrivals and departures. The chapel and the Catholic Guild (founded 1952) sustain a daily Mass schedule, sacramental ministry, spiritual direction, RCIA, critical incident stress support, and pastoral care for grieving passengers and stranded travelers. Worshipping here — or joining the Guild — means keeping the Church visibly present where life moves fastest and human need is most acute.
Mass times at Our Lady of the Skies Chapel @ JFK Airport
Weekly Mass schedule
History of Our Lady of the Skies Chapel
Founded in 1955 at what was then Idlewild Airport, Our Lady of the Skies was born from the battlefield promise of a U.S. Customs officer, Bob O'Brien, who prayed to Our Lady while under fire in Europe during World War II. Together with fellow Customs officers and the pastor of Christ the King Parish in Springfield Gardens, he organized Sunday Masses in the Brass Rail Restaurant and a Thursday Rosary in hangars and offices, then formed the Catholic Guild to raise funds for a permanent chapel. The original 1955 chapel was dismantled in 1966 to make room for a British Airways expansion, and a new chapel was erected the same year for about one million dollars. That chapel in turn gave way in the mid-1980s to the present one, dedicated by Bishop Thomas Daily on August 14, 2002.
- 1953 — fundraising dance at the Triangle Ballroom in Richmond Hill
- 1954 — 'get to know each other' dinner-dance at the Battalion Hall in Elmhurst
- 1955 — original chapel dedicated, served by priests of Christ the King Parish
- 1966 — chapel dismantled for British Airways expansion; rebuilt for ~$1 million with sponsorship of Bishop Brian McEntegart
- 1966 — Fr. Joseph Fox appointed first full-time Catholic airport chaplain
- 1988 (mid-) — marble altar and stained-glass chapel demolished to make way for the current chapel
- 2002 — current chapel dedicated by Bishop Thomas Daily
The Chaplains
Our Lady of the Skies has been served by a distinguished line of chaplains since the Diocese of Brooklyn established the first full-time position in 1966. The current chaplain, Fr. Cezariusz Jastrzębski, also serves as pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Jamaica and shares an office at the airport with Imam Essam Mahmoud, the Muslim chaplain of JFK.
- 1955-1965 — Msgr. Francis Fitzgibbon and Priests of Christ the King Parish
- 1966-1973 — Fr. Joseph Fox
- 1973-1989 — Msgr. Thomas J. Flanagan
- 1978-1988 — Fr. Joseph Buckley
- 1988-2005 — Fr. James T. Devine (also President, International Association of Civil Aviation Chaplains, 1993-1999)
- 2006-2010 — Fr. Gerard T. Walker
- 2010-(approx.)2022 — Fr. Chris J. Piasta
- approx. 2022-present — Fr. Cezariusz Jastrzębski (also pastor of St. Joseph Parish, Jamaica)
Catholic Guild of JFK
The Catholic Guild of JFK — formerly of New York International Airport — was founded on September 20, 1952, and exists to 'promote, foster, and maintain Catholicism and Our Lady of the Skies Chapel.' Any person is eligible for membership, renewed annually by paying dues. The Guild currently numbers about 300 members nationwide under president Alfred DePhillips, and its Board meets several times a year to pray, discuss Guild and Chapel business, and organize the Annual Luncheon. The Airport Chaplain also serves as Chaplain to the Guild and offers a monthly Mass for all living and deceased members and their families.
- Founded: September 20, 1952
- President: Alfred DePhillips
- Membership: ~300 members nationwide
- Annual Luncheon (autumn)
- Monthly Mass for living and deceased members
- Contact: (718) 656-5348 or [email protected]
Visiting the Chapel
The chapel is open from 6:00 AM to 10:00 PM daily. Because it sits pre-security in Terminal 4, anyone can visit — including travelers who have not yet checked in — without a boarding pass. The Port Authority asks visitors to stay on the LEFT (East) side of the Departure Floor, past the check-in counters; if stopped, simply say you are going to the Chapel and you will be allowed to proceed.
- Location: 4th floor (Departure Floor), Terminal 4, JFK
- Access: pre-security (no boarding pass required)
- Hours: 6:00 AM – 10:00 PM daily
- Mailing address: Suite 461-037, Jamaica, NY 11430-0000
- Phone: 718.656.5348 | Fax: 718.656.8162
Pastoral Care and Ministries
Although it is technically a chaplaincy rather than a parish, Our Lady of the Skies offers a full sacramental and pastoral ministry to airport employees and travelers. The chaplain celebrates Mass for traveling groups, prepares adults through the RCIA, offers spiritual direction, and provides critical incident stress management. He is also called to comfort passengers receiving tragic news — meeting them aboard the aircraft with a U.S. Customs agent, then accompanying them to pray in his office — and has ministered through major aviation incidents including Pan Am 103, TWA 800, the 9/11 aftermath, and the 2010 Icelandic volcano ash cloud.
- Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA)
- Spiritual direction
- Critical Incident Stress Management
- Pastoral care for grieving passengers and airline crews
- Masses for traveling groups
Treasures of the Chapel
The chapel holds several items that connect its ministry to the wider history of the Church and of New York. Most prized is a chalice donated by Pope Paul VI — the same chalice the Pope used to celebrate the Mass for Peace at Yankee Stadium on October 4, 1965. The current statue of Our Lady of the Skies was carved in Oberammergau, Germany, and depicts the Virgin Mary perched on an airplane propeller at the side of the altar. Some of the original stained-glass windows from earlier chapels on the airport site were preserved and installed in the current chapel and in the new Interfaith Chapel at LaGuardia Airport.
- Chalice of Pope Paul VI (1965 Mass for Peace, Yankee Stadium)
- Statue of Our Lady of the Skies carved in Oberammergau, Germany, on an airplane propeller
- Original stained-glass windows preserved from earlier chapels
Contact
The chaplaincy can be reached by phone, fax, email, or postal mail. Visitors are warmly welcomed at the chapel during its public hours.
- Chaplain: Fr. Cezariusz Jastrzebski
- Deacon: Dcn. Vincent Lino
- Phone: 718.656.5348
- Fax: 718.656.8162
- Email: [email protected]
- Mail: Our Lady of the Skies Chapel, JFK International Airport, Terminal 4, Suite 461-037, Jamaica, NY 11430-0000
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Msgr. Francis Fitzgibbon and Priests of Christ the King Parish, Springfield Gardens1955-1965
Served the original chapel during its first decade.
- Fr. Joseph Fox1966-1973
First full-time Catholic airport chaplain; appointed by Bishop Brian McEntegart after the chapel was rebuilt for the British Airways terminal expansion.
- Msgr. Thomas J. Flanagan1973-1989
- Fr. Joseph Buckley1978-1988
- Fr. James T. Devine1988-2005
Responded to Pan Am 103 and TWA 800 family needs; ministered to Port Authority families after 9/11; served as President of the International Association of Civil Aviation Chaplains (1993-1999); continues as Port Authority Chaplain.
- Fr. Gerard T. Walker2006-2010
Brought the chapel onto the Internet; witnessed Pope Benedict XVI's departure from JFK on April 20, 2008.
- Fr. Chris J. Piasta2010-2022 (approx.)
Cared for stranded passengers during the 2010 Icelandic volcano ash cloud ('Camp Kennedy'); responded to airplane incidents at LaGuardia.
- Fr. Cezariusz Jastrzębskiapprox. 2022-present
Current chaplain; also pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Jamaica. Shares an office at the airport with Imam Essam Mahmoud, the Muslim chaplain.