St. Odilo Parish Church-National Shrine of the Poor Souls

In April 1927, George Cardinal Mundelein commissioned Fr. William J. Roberts to form a new parish to serve the fast-growing city of Berwyn, Illinois. Father Roberts was given the rare privilege of choosing its name, and he selected St. Odilo, the Abbot of Cluny who instituted All Souls' Day. The chancery purchased a $48,000 site at Clarence Avenue and 23rd Street in a neighborhood that had grown rapidly with the extension of the Douglas Park elevated train. A temporary storefront chapel on the corner of 22nd Street (Cermak Road) and Clarence Avenue was prepared, and the first Mass was celebrated there at 8:00 a.m. on June 12, 1927 by Father Roberts, assisted by altar boys James Mueller and Edward McGovern and parishioners Frank and Marie Kiedrowski and the Goyettes. Genevieve Doyle McNichols made her debut as organist — a post she would hold until 1983. Professor George Hrusa directed the choir. Within seven months the parish's Building Fund Committee raised $22,000 through card parties, carnivals, and picnics. The cornerstone for the permanent church was laid in May 1928, and the Northern Italian-style building — which combined a church on the first floor, school on the second, and parish hall in the basement — was completed just six months later at a cost of $150,000. Cardinal Mundelein dedicated it on November 4, 1928, solemnly granting St. Odilo the status of National Shrine of the Poor Souls with a 200-day indulgence attached to every visit for the souls in purgatory. That same year, the Sisters of Charity, B.V.M. — alumnae of whom had taught Father Roberts himself — arrived to run the school, opening with 250 students under principal Sister Mary Celerina. A Holy Name Society for men, an Altar and Rosary Society for women, and a Young People's Club were organized in the parish's first year. Parish life was shaken on December 26, 1945, by the sudden death of founding pastor Father Roberts. Father Patrick Buckley took over on January 12, 1946, and immediately launched a major building campaign that produced the present church structure. Successive pastors continued to expand facilities and ministries through the post-war decades, supporting the school, the parish, and the unique shrine devotion. In 2002, the parish celebrated its 75th Jubilee Year with five special events, including a Mass presided over by Francis Cardinal George. In June 2023, after nearly a century of combined parish and school operations, the parish school was closed; the building now houses the Religious Education program, group meetings, and parish social functions. Since 2019, Father Bartholomew (Fr. Bart) Juncer has served as pastor; he continues the Sunday Latin Mass, added a Wednesday evening Latin Mass and Poor Souls Devotions, and has overseen replacement of broken floor tiles, carpeting, ceiling repainting, and other restoration work that has renewed the church to its original beauty.