About St. Lucy's Church (National Shrine of St. Gerard) · Newark, New Jersey
St. Lucy's Church is a historic Roman Catholic parish in Newark's old First Ward (Central Ward), long known as Newark's 'Little Italy.' It was established in 1891 by Italian immigrants from the Naples region and is famous as the home of the American National Shrine of St. Gerard Majella, designated by the National Conference of U.S. Bishops in 1977 because of the parish's widespread reputation for miraculous answered prayers for mothers and couples struggling to conceive. The present 'Italian Cathedral,' built in 1925 and designed by architect Neil J. Convery with murals by Gonippo Raggi, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (1998) and today serves a diverse, multilingual community with Masses in Italian, Spanish, English, and French.
- Established
- 1891
- Patron
- St. Lucy of Syracuse; St. Gerard Majella (Shrine patron)
- Rector
- Father Chris Aleti, MCCJ (Administrator; Comboni Missionary)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Newark
Why belong here
St. Lucy's is one of New Jersey's most distinctive Catholic communities: a National Historic Landmark parish that is also a national pilgrimage shrine. Anyone — married or single, Catholic or curious — can join daily Masses celebrated in Italian, Spanish, English, and French, pray at the chapel of St. Gerard Majella for the gift of children or safe pregnancies, or attend the famous October Feast with its street procession, music, food, and fireworks. The parish actively serves immigrants and refugees (partnering with First Friends of NJ/NY), runs a school, and is sustained by the international Comboni Missionaries, giving it a global outlook rooted in Newark's historic Italian-American heart.
Mass times at St. Lucy's Church (National Shrine of St. Gerard)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Available by appointment / by calling the parish office (973-803-4200)
Adoration times
- Saturday 6:00 AM to 11:00 PM (per Catholic Church Directory listing)
History of St. Lucy's Parish
St. Lucy's was founded on September 20, 1891, to serve the flood of Italian immigrants — most from southern Italy and Sicily — who had settled Newark's First Ward, the 'quarry district' that became the city's Little Italy. Bishop Winand Wigger sent the German-speaking but Italian-fluent Reverend Conrad Schotthoefifer to organize the parish, with Reverend Felix Morelli serving as first administrator. Father Joseph Perotti became administrator in 1897 and pastor in 1899; under him the parish grew to 17,000 registered parishioners by 1920, with more than 10,000 baptisms in the previous decade. Though deeply poor, the community built the present monumental church in 1925, designed by architect Neil J. Convery and decorated by muralist Gonippo Raggi. The parish also opened a parochial school served from 1906 by the Baptistine Sisters of the Nazzarene, and added a rectory and Community Center under Father Gaetano Ruggiero. By 1998 St. Lucy's had been placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
- Founded September 20, 1891
- First administrator: Rev. Felix Morelli
- First pastor: Monsignor Joseph Perotti (1899–1933)
- Present church constructed 1925; consecrated December 1925 on the Feast of St. Lucy
- NRHP listed December 31, 1998
Architecture & Sacred Art
St. Lucy's is a two-story, hybrid basilica-plan church in Romanesque Revival / eclectic style, designed by local Newark architect Neil J. Convery and built around 1925 by Italian immigrants from the Naples region. The exterior is stretcher-bond matte-glazed pressed beige brick trimmed with white glazed terra cotta, a granite water table and steps, and a standing-seam copper roof. The interior is famously rich: sculptured marble altars, bejeweled and costumed statuary, painted murals, mosaics, and stained glass. Murals were completed in the 1940s by Gonippo Raggi, one of the foremost 20th-century Catholic church interior decorators. A rose window and colossal pilasters frame the main entrance.
- Architect: Neil J. Convery
- Muralist: Gonippo Raggi (work completed 1940s)
- Beige brick, white terra cotta, copper roof, granite steps
- Locally called the 'Italian Cathedral'
The Chapel & National Shrine of St. Gerard Majella
Between the south transept and apse, the two-story Chapel of St. Gerard reflects the architecture of the main church with its barrel-vaulted ceiling and apse, finished in imported marbles and painted ceiling murals. Its marble altar holds a statue of St. Gerard Majella, reached by a very narrow staircase in the apse. Designated by the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in 1977 as the National Shrine of St. Gerard Majella, the chapel is the heart of an international pilgrimage centered on prayers for mothers, expectant parents, and childless couples. Devotees may obtain a white handkerchief touched to St. Gerard's relics.
- National Shrine designated 1977 by USCCB
- Hosts the annual October Feast of St. Gerard (Oct. 16)
- Site of monthly St. Gerard Mass (1st Sunday, 5:30 PM)
St. Gerard Majella & the October Feast
St. Gerard Majella (1726–1755) was a Redemptorist lay brother from the Province of Avellino, Italy, canonized in 1904 and beloved as a patron of mothers, expectant parents, and children. Italian immigrants from his home province carried his devotion to Newark's First Ward beginning in 1899; the annual feast grew so popular and was so widely credited with 'miracle babies' for childless couples that in 1977 the U.S. bishops named St. Lucy's chapel the National Shrine. Each October the parish hosts a four-day celebration with a nine-day novena, traditional lights, music, food stands, a grand procession through Newark (passing the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart), and fireworks at Garside Street and Bloomfield Avenue. Pilgrims arrive from across the New Jersey Italian diaspora and from across North America, including Canada.
- Feast day: October 16
- Nine-day novena preceding the feast
- Street procession from St. Lucy's through Newark
- Fireworks finale at Garside St. and Bloomfield Ave.
Parish Ministries & Outreach
St. Lucy's ministries combine devotional, educational, and social-service outreach. The parish operates the National Shrine of St. Gerard pilgrimage ministry and runs an active immigration services program — staffed by contact Omar Navarro — that partners with First Friends of NJ & NY and Faith in New Jersey. St. Lucy's played a central role in the ten-year campaign to allow undocumented immigrants in New Jersey to obtain driver's licenses. The parish also supports the Comboni Missionary outreach in Uganda and engages in ecumenical community work through the Newark Interfaith Alliance. Historic ministries include the parochial school (founded in 1906 under the Baptistine Sisters of the Nazzarene), the Columbus Cadets, and youth recreational programs.
- Immigration and refugee services (Omar Navarro, 973-803-4207)
- St. Gerard Shrine pilgrim ministry
- Faith in New Jersey partnership
- Comboni Missionaries' Uganda mission
- Parochial school / religious education
- Newark Interfaith Alliance
Sacraments
St. Lucy's celebrates the full range of Catholic sacraments. Baptisms, marriages, First Communions, Confirmations, Anointing of the Sick, and funeral liturgies are arranged through the parish office. The parish is particularly known for its blessing and prayer ministry for expectant mothers and childless couples at the Shrine chapel.
- Baptism, Marriage, First Communion, Confirmation
- Anointing of the Sick, Funerals
- Blessing of expectant mothers at the Shrine
Visiting St. Lucy's
Pilgrims and visitors are welcome at St. Lucy's year-round. The building sits on Ruggiero Plaza, a public square completed in 1997, in Newark's historic Little Italy just south of Branch Brook Park. From I-280, take Exit 14 north on MLK Boulevard, then left onto Seventh Avenue. Public transit is available via Newark Light Rail and NJ Transit. Inside, visitors can view the Raggi murals, marble altars, stained glass, and the two-story Chapel of St. Gerard Majella. The annual October Feast of St. Gerard — running four days around October 16 — is the highlight, with a street procession, food, music, and fireworks.
- 118 Seventh Avenue (Ruggiero Plaza), Newark, NJ 07104
- Phone: 973-803-4200
- From I-280 Exit 14 north on MLK Blvd., left on Seventh Ave.
- Annual Feast of St. Gerard in October
National Register of Historic Places Listing
St. Lucy's Roman Catholic Church was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 31, 1998, under NRHP reference number 98001570. The nomination was prepared by Neil J. Convery and Gonippo Raggi and is filed with Seton Hall University Library. The property was listed under Criterion A for its long association with Newark's Italian immigrant community, and Criterion C for the architectural and artistic significance of Convery's design and Raggi's murals. Period of significance: 1925–1948.
- NRHP #98001570
- Listed December 31, 1998
- Criteria A and C
- Period of significance 1925–1948
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Conrad Schotthoefifer1891
German priest fluent in Italian, dispatched by Bishop Winand Wigger to organize Italian parishes in Newark; established St. Lucy's on September 20, 1891.
- Rev. Felix Morelli1891–1897
First administrator; also helped form other Italian parishes in Newark and New York.
- Rev. Joseph Perotti (later Monsignor)1897–1933
Appointed administrator 1897, pastor 1899; built the present 1925 church, founded the school, and led the parish for 36 years until his death on September 14, 1933.
- Rev. Gaetano Ruggiero1933–?
Succeeded Monsignor Perotti; oversaw church renovation, built the rectory, and erected the Community Center.
- Msgr. Joseph Granatountil June 2009
Third pastor; served 54 years; coordinated the National Shrine of St. Gerard project inspired by the late Fr. Joseph Nativo; oversaw construction of Ruggiero Plaza in 1997.
- Father Chris Aleti, MCCJcurrent
Administrator under the Comboni Missionaries of the Heart of Jesus.
 "St. Lucy's Church (National Shrine of St. Gerard)")