About Saint Peter (Parish of Sts. Peter and Paul & Assumption) · Staten Island, New York
The Parish of Sts. Peter and Paul & Assumption is a Roman Catholic parish on the North Shore of Staten Island, New York, in the New Brighton neighborhood. It is the historic 'Mother Church of Staten Island,' tracing its roots to St. Peter's, established in 1839 by Bishop John Dubois — the oldest Catholic parish in the borough. The present-day parish is the result of two mergers: Church of the Assumption and St. Paul's Chapel were united in 2007 under Cardinal Edward Egan's 'Making All Things New' initiative, and on August 1, 2015, that combined parish merged with St. Peter's under Cardinal Timothy Dolan. Today the parish is also linked as part of the larger Parish of Our Lady of Good Counsel – St. Peter – St. Paul – Assumption. Fr. Louis Jerome serves as pastor, and the rectory at 53 St. Mark's Place is the parish's main office, with the Church of the Assumption at 15 Webster Avenue remaining open for worship.
- Established
- 1839
- Patron
- Sts. Peter and Paul; the Blessed Virgin Mary (Assumption)
- Rector
- Rev. Louis Jerome
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York
Why belong here
This is Staten Island's oldest Catholic parish — the historic 'Mother Church' founded in 1839 — with roots in three distinct immigrant communities (Irish-American, Italian-American, and broader North Shore Catholic families) and worship that continues at both the landmark St. Peter's Church on St. Mark's Place and the Italian Renaissance Church of the Assumption on Webster Avenue. Parishioners can attend Sunday Mass at 12:00 PM in St. Peter's (with confessions beforehand from 11:15–11:45 AM), Saturday Vigil at 4:00 PM and Sunday Masses in English and Spanish at the Assumption Church, and be part of a tightly-knit parish that preserves its records and traditions at the St. Peter's rectory at 53 St. Mark's Place.
Mass times at Saint Peter (Parish of Sts. Peter and Paul & Assumption)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 11:15 AM – 11:45 AM (St. Peter's, before 12:00 PM Mass)
- Saturday 3:15 PM – 3:45 PM (Church of the Assumption)
- Sunday 9:15 AM – 9:45 AM (Church of the Assumption)
Parish History
The Parish of Sts. Peter and Paul & Assumption is rooted in three distinct communities on Staten Island's North Shore: Irish-American Catholics of New Brighton (St. Peter's, 1839), Italian-American families of the Webster Avenue mission (Assumption, 1922), and the western New Brighton faithful served by St. Paul's (1923). Two archdiocesan mergers — Assumption + St. Paul's in 2007, and that parish into St. Peter's on August 1, 2015 — produced today's combined parish. Both the St. Peter's Church on St. Mark's Place and the Church of the Assumption on Webster Avenue remain in active use.
- St. Peter's founded March 1839 by Bishop John Dubois
- First pastor: Rev. Madrano, a Spanish priest
- Original St. Peter's church dedicated September 1844 by Bishop Hughes
- Rev. James Roosevelt Bayley served as pastor in 1846 (later Archbishop of Baltimore; nephew of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton)
- Current St. Peter's church dedicated Thanksgiving Day 1903; Cardinal's Tower blessed 1914
- Church of the Assumption dedicated August 15, 1922 (Feast of the Assumption)
- St. Paul's opened 1923 in Spanish mission style; old building demolished 1963
- 2007: Assumption + St. Paul's merged as 'Assumption–St. Paul'
- August 1, 2015: Assumption–St. Paul merged into St. Peter's, forming today's parish
St. Peter's Church — The Mother Church of Staten Island
Built to replace the original Carroll Place church and dedicated on Thanksgiving Day 1903, the present St. Peter's Church is a Romanesque-style landmark. Notable features include stained-glass windows imported from Munich, an onyx altar rail imported from Italy, Stations of the Cross from France, and the 150-foot 'Cardinal's Tower' blessed by John Cardinal Farley in 1914. Farley's coat of arms with 15 tassels is still visible on the tower's exterior. The present rectory was built in 1912.
Church of the Assumption
Built in 1921–1922 by the Niewenhous Company of New York City at the corner of Brighton and Webster Avenues, the Church of the Assumption is designed in Italian Renaissance style and was dedicated on the Feast of the Assumption, August 15, 1922. Six decorative terra-cotta tiles above the Webster Avenue entrance depict St. Joseph with the Child Jesus, the Lamb of God, and the four Evangelists. The parish school was dedicated in September 1962. Assumption continues to host Masses and confessions after the 2015 merger.
St. Paul's Chapel (Closed 2015)
Originally built in 1923 on Franklin Avenue in the style of a Spanish mission as a chapel of St. Peter's, St. Paul's opened its own school in the 1930s. The old church was demolished in 1963, after which services were held in the gymnasium/auditorium of St. Paul's School on Clinton Avenue. St. Paul's was merged with the Church of the Assumption in 2007, and the chapel was closed in 2015 when Assumption–St. Paul was folded into St. Peter's.
Our Patron Saints
The parish bears the names of three great patrons: St. Peter the Apostle, St. Paul the Apostle, and the Blessed Virgin Mary in her Assumption. The parish website offers dedicated reflections on each. St. Peter — fisherman, leader of the Apostles, and the rock on which Christ built His Church — is venerated in a special papal connection, with every June 29 Feast of Saints Peter and Paul observed as a particular celebration. The Assumption, the dogma that Mary was taken body and soul into heavenly glory, is honored on August 15, the same day the Church of the Assumption on Webster Avenue was dedicated in 1922.
- Feast of Saints Peter and Paul: June 29
- Feast of the Assumption: August 15
- St. Peter — apostle, first pope, fisherman from Galilee
- St. Paul — Apostle to the Gentiles, author of many New Testament letters
- Blessed Virgin Mary (Assumption) — patron of the 1922 Webster Avenue church
Clergy & Pastoral Leadership
The parish is currently served by Rev. Louis Jerome as pastor, who began his tenure in 2020 during the transition of the newly merged parish. The official site also lists Fr. Matthew, available at [email protected]. St. Paul's Chapel maintains a published succession of pastors from its 1923 opening under Rev. Msgr. Joseph A. Farrell through the present day. The parish is also linked, for collaborative pastoral purposes, with Our Lady of Good Counsel in Tompkinsville.
- Rev. Louis Jerome — current Pastor (2020–)
- Fr. Matthew — associate priest
- St. Paul's pastor line traced back to Msgr. Joseph A. Farrell (1923–1930)
- Rev. Michael Cichon served 2007–2021 and led the 2015 merger
- Parish linked with Our Lady of Good Counsel, Tompkinsville
Visiting & Contact
Parish records are kept at St. Peter's, which serves as the main parish church and rectory. Visitors are welcome at either worship site; the parish office can be reached by phone during business hours. The official website and the Archdiocese of New York's parish directory both list the parish under St. Peter and Assumption – St. Paul Church.
- Parish office: 53 St. Mark's Place, Staten Island, NY 10301
- Phone: (718) 727-2672
- Alt. phone: (718) 447-6362
- Assumption Church: 15 Webster Avenue, Staten Island, NY 10301
- Website: http://assumptionstpaulsi.com/
- Listed on the Archdiocese of New York parish directory
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Msgr. Joseph A. Farrell1923–1930
First pastor when St. Paul's opened; had earlier served as curate at St. Peter's 1900–1917
- Rev. Robert M. Gibson1930–1938
- Rev. Edward J. Tobin1938–1941
- Rev. William B. Duggan1941–1943
- Rev. Daniel J. Downing1943–1952
- Rev. Francis X. Doyle1952–1962
- Rt. Rev. Msgr. Michael O'Donnell1962–1966
- Rt. Rev. Florence D. Cohalan1966–1983
- Rev. Thomas J. Darby1983–1989
- Msgr. Jeffrey P. Conway1989–1994
- Msgr. Vincent Bartley1994–2007
- Rev. Michael Cichon2007–2021
Served as administrator of St. Peter's from 2013 and led the 2015 merger forming the current parish
- Rev. Louis Jerome2020–
Current pastor; began during transition to the merged parish