Sacred Heart

About Sacred Heart Parish

Sacred Heart is a Roman Catholic parish in the Jesuit tradition, located at 1400 Perry Street in the Manchester neighborhood of South Richmond, Virginia. It is the oldest Catholic parish in the Manchester area and is part of the Diocese of Richmond, within Deanery 8. Since 1990 the parish has been entrusted to the Jesuits of the Maryland Province, and it is recognized across the diocese as a center for Hispanic ministry and Latino community life. The parish's own mission statement describes it as 'a Catholic parish where people can find a home, warmth, welcome, acceptance and healing' that seeks 'to reflect the mystery of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to all.' It is also a registered historic site: the 1901 church is a contributing building in the Manchester Residential and Commercial National Register Historic District and was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.

History of Sacred Heart Parish

The parish grew out of Bishop James Gibbons's 1876 dream of a Catholic presence south of the James River, beginning with a Sunday school on Bainbridge Street, a frame schoolhouse in 1897, and finally a church built and dedicated in 1901 with funding from the financier-philanthropist couple Thomas Fortune Ryan and Ida Mary Barry Ryan. The original schoolhouse was relocated behind the church and is still standing as 'The Hall of Nations.' Through the 20th century Sacred Heart built a brick school (1931, with a second story added in 1951), spawned two daughter parishes (St. Edward the Confessor in 1959, St. Augustine in 1973), absorbed members of two historically African American parishes closed in the late 1960s, closed its school in 1987, and was given into the care of the Jesuits in 1990. The 1990s brought Spanish-language Masses and the formal integration of Spanish-speaking parishioners; the 2010s brought the refocused Sacred Heart Center and the parish's acquisition of its entire block plus half the block across Perry Street. The parish has published a centennial history, 'Sacred Heart Church 1901–2001: A Catholic Tradition South of the James.'

• 1876 — Bishop James Gibbons purchases land at 14th & Perry Sts. for a future parish
• 1876 — Catholic Sunday school opens in a private home on Bainbridge St.
• 1897 — Frame school building constructed on the parish lot (later 'the White House,' now 'The Hall of Nations')
• 1901 — Church designed by Joseph Hubert McGuire built and dedicated; first pastor Rev. Thomas J. Waters
• 1903 — Rectory built next to the church
• 1931 — Brick Sacred Heart School built across Perry Street; staffed by Benedictine sisters
• 1951 — Second story added to the school
• 1959 — St. Edward the Confessor Parish established from Sacred Heart territory
• 1967 — St. Gerard Parish closed; members welcomed into Sacred Heart
• 1969 — St. Joseph Parish (Jackson Ward) closed; members welcomed into Sacred Heart
• 1973 — St. Augustine Parish established from Sacred Heart territory
• 1987 — Sacred Heart School closed
• 1990 — Jesuits of the Maryland Province assume responsibility; Sacred Heart Center opens in the former school
• 1992 — Spanish-language Masses begin under Centro Católico Guadalupe
• 1999 — Spanish-speaking community formally becomes members of Sacred Heart and St. Augustine parishes
• 2002 — Church added to the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places
• 2011 — Sacred Heart Center refocused on Latino outreach
• 2016 — Parish completes purchase of its full block and ~half of the block across Perry Street

Architecture and Historic Significance

The Church of the Sacred Heart is a 1½-story, brick, Renaissance Revival / Romanesque Revival church on a longitudinal plan, designed by New York architect Joseph Hubert McGuire (1865–1947) — a student of the ateliers of Daumet and Girault at the École des Beaux-Arts in Paris. McGuire also designed Richmond's Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and the Church of the Sacred Heart in Suffern, New York. The church features a slate roof, common-bond brick walls, a stone belt course, a corbel-table roofline, arched stained-glass windows with roundels and hood molds, and a striking southeast corner tower with a granite foundation, arched double-leaf doors with fanlights and pediments, paired brackets, recessed brick panels, an open attic with columns and balustrade, and a pyramidal roof with flared eaves. Inside, square coffers in the tower ceilings, simple geometric stained-glass patterns, a Roman arch separating apse and nave, and a hammer-beam ceiling echo the exterior's Beaux-Arts motifs. Marble altars were installed in 1925 and additional interior modifications followed the Second Vatican Council. The church is a contributing building in the Manchester Residential and Commercial National Register Historic District and was individually listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 20, 2002 (NRHP #02001368; VLR #127-0676).

• Architect: Joseph Hubert McGuire (1865–1947), trained at the École des Beaux-Arts, Paris
• Style: Renaissance Revival / Romanesque Revival, with strong Beaux-Arts influence
• Materials: common-bond brick walls, slate roof, stone belt course, granite foundation at the tower
• Notable exterior features: arched stained-glass windows, hood molds, corbel table, corner tower with paired brackets, columns, balustrade, and pyramidal roof
• Notable interior features: hammer-beam ceiling, square-coffered tower ceilings, geometric stained glass, Roman arch between apse and nave, marble altars (1925)
• Other contributing buildings in the parish complex: the 1897 frame school ('The Hall of Nations') and the rectory

Jesuit Identity

Since 1990 Sacred Heart has been a Jesuit parish, served by priests of the Society of Jesus from the Maryland Province. The Jesuits reopened the former school building as Sacred Heart Center, a non-profit community resource for the Bainbridge-Blackwell neighborhood, and over the following decades the parish has been shaped by the order's emphasis on education, missionary outreach, and social-justice ministry. Today the parish is led by Fr. Shay Auerbach, S.J. (pastor since 2008 and Dean of Deanery 8) with Fr. Jose Salguero Cortez, S.J. as parochial vicar, and Fr. Don Ward, S.J. as a senior priest in residence.

• Society of Jesus (Jesuits), Maryland Province — assumed pastoral care of Sacred Heart in 1990
• Sacred Heart Center (founded 1990) — Jesuit-sponsored community non-profit in the former school building
• Fr. Shay Auerbach, S.J. — pastor since 2008; also president of the board of Sacred Heart Center

Sacraments

The parish prepares parishioners for the sacraments of initiation and marriage in both English and Spanish. Baptism classes are available in both languages; First Communion and Confirmation are coordinated by the Director of Religious Education; marriage preparation is offered in Spanish at the parish and in English through the diocesan 'Unveiled' program.

• Baptism — coordinator: María Elena Gaona (804-729-5492); classes in Spanish and English
• First Communion — coordinator: Yenni León (804-715-5591); preparation in Spanish and English
• Confirmation — coordinator: Yenni León (804-715-5591); candidate must be at least 15 and in 10th grade
• Marriage — coordinator: Silvana Martínez (804-781-4525); Saturday weddings typically 11:30 a.m. or 1:30 p.m.
• RCIA — coordinator: Carmen O'Brien (804-729-5497); Saturdays 5:00–6:30 p.m. for adults and children of catechetical age

Ministries and Faith Formation

Sacred Heart's ministries are organized around its bilingual, multicultural character and its Jesuit mission. The parish's music ministry fields multiple choirs under music coordinator Carmen O'Brien, including a bilingual children's and teen choir. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul hosts a Sacred Heart Conference that meets the first and third Mondays of each month to assist neighbors in 23224 and 23234. The parish also runs religious-education programs for First Communion, Confirmation, and RCIA, a youth ministry, and visits to local care facilities including St. Francis Home, Renaissance Beaufont Towers, Beaufont Nursing Home, and Heritage Oaks.

• Society of St. Vincent de Paul — Sacred Heart Conference
• Music Ministry (English and Spanish choirs, bilingual children's choir)
• RCIA, Religious Education, and Youth Ministry
• Visits to St. Francis Home, Renaissance Beaufont Towers, Beaufont Nursing Home, Heritage Oaks
• Sacred Heart Center — adult education, youth and children's programs, community hub

Sacred Heart Center

Sacred Heart Center is the Jesuit-sponsored non-profit founded in 1990 in the parish's former school building. Originally conceived as a neighborhood resource for the Bainbridge-Blackwell area offering child care, youth activities, and adult education, since 2011 it has refocused its entire programming on the Latino/Hispanic community of greater Richmond, working in close partnership with the parish. Its current mission is to 'create a hub for the Richmond Hispanic/Latino community which opens opportunities for economic and social integration, self-fulfillment, and community leadership development.' Fr. Shay Auerbach, S.J. serves as president of the Center's board of directors.

• Adult Education
• Youth & Children programs
• Community Hub
• Latino outreach and integration initiatives

Getting Involved & Visiting

Visitors are warmly welcomed at all liturgies, devotions, and parish events. The parish office can be reached at (804) 232-8964 or [email protected]; office hours are Sunday through Friday 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., with extended evening hours Monday through Friday 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. Livestream Masses are available on the parish's YouTube channel. Newcomers are encouraged to register, explore the RCIA program if interested in becoming Catholic, and consider joining one of the parish's many ministries and choirs.

• Parish office: 1400 Perry Street, Richmond, VA 23224
• Phone: (804) 232-8964
• Email: [email protected]
• Livestream: parish YouTube channel
• Social: facebook.com/SagradoCorazonRVA and instagram.com/sacredheartchurchrva