FALL RIVER — The plight of two small Catholic churches has been overshadowed by the impending closure of the landmark St. Anne’s Church and Shrine, slated to offer its last Mass on Nov. 25.
On that same day, Holy Rosary Chapel, 120 Beattie St., and Holy Cross Chapel, 47 Pulaski St., will close their doors, as well.
Parishioners of Holy Rosary are holding a brainstorming session on the closure of their church on Thursday, Nov. 1, at 7 p.m., at the VFW Hall, 486 Bedford St.
Holy Rosary and Holy Cross, like St. Anne’s, ministered to a population that has dwindled over the years as less and less people attend church based on nationality, if they attend at all.
Both chapels have been run and maintained by St. Mary’s Cathedral for a number of years, each offering one Mass per week.
John Kearns, communications director for the Fall River Diocese, said staffing those two chapels has become a challenge.
He said St. Mary’s priests have offered the weekly Masses, along with weddings and funerals, in the two chapels. St. Mary’s also maintained the buildings.
“We really can’t staff those two chapels any longer,” Kearns said.
In 2017, Holy Rosary saw an average of 115 parishioners at its weekly Mass. Kearns said the chapel is capable of seating 300. At Holy Cross, the average for a weekly Mass was 102. It seats 200.
Kearns said there is plenty of capacity in other nearby churches to accommodate parishioners of St. Anne’s, Holy Rosary and Holy Cross. He said geography was taken into account in the decision making process.
As far as the disposition of the buildings after closure, Kearns said “nothing yet has been decided.”
The closure of the three churches is part of a consolidation process of city churches.
Kearns said Holy Rosary and Holy Cross, like St. Anne’s, were once in “wonderful thriving communities.”
While St. Anne’s was built for a growing French-Canadian population. Holy Rosary was built for the Italian community and Holy Cross for the Polish population.
Holy Rosary — its full name being Our Lady of the Holy Rosary of Pompeii — was built by the Italian community. Its lower church was blessed in 1904, with an upper church and dedicated in 1915. The church ceased to be a separate entity in 2008 and was placed in the care or St. Mary’s.
Holy Cross was founded in 1916 for Polish speaking parishioners. Its church building on Pulaski Street was built in 1927. The church had a parish school and a convent, both demolished in the 1970s. Holy Cross merged with Saints Peter and Paul Parish in 1998, some years after Saints Peter and Paul Church was destroyed by fire. The church in 2013 was officially united with St. Mary’s as a chapel.
The closure of the three churches will leave the Fall River Diocese with 10 Catholic churches in the city. Of the 10 churches left, two North End churches — St. Michael’s and St. Joseph’s — share a priest.
There are just three priests at present to provide ministry at the four remaining central Fall River parishes. The new grouping — called the Catholic Community of Central Fall River — includes St. Mary’s Cathedral, along with Good Shepherd, St. Anthony of Padua and St. Stanislaus.
Parishioners of Holy Rosary, Holy Cross, St. Anne’s, and St. Bernadette’s ( that closed in August), are invited to join a church in the Catholic Community of Central Fall River.
A century ago, there was a burgeoning holy community in the city, with 26 Catholic churches located in Fall River. The number had grown from just six in 1900 and 15 in 1910.
The city directory for 1920 listed the following Catholic churches: Sacred Heart, Santo Christo, Espirito Santo, Church of the Madonna Del Rosario, Blessed Sacrament, St. Elizabeth’s, St. Joseph’s, St. Mary’s, St. Louis, Notre Dame de Lourdes, St. Anne’s, St. Antonio, St. Jean Baptiste, St. Anthony’s Syrian Maronite, St. Miguel’s, St. Matthew’s, St. Michael’s, St. Patrick’s, St. Roch’s, St. William’s, Church of the Immaculate Conception, St. Stanislaus, Our Lady of the Angels, First Polish Church of the Blessed Virgin, Holy Trinity, and St. Mary’s Russian Orthodox.
Email Deborah Allard at dallard@heraldnews.com.