Notre Dame Church Celebrates Centennial In French, Spanish and English

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“Je vous salue, Marie, pleine

de grace…”

“Dios te salve, María, llena eres

de gracia…”

“Hail Mary, full of grace…”

When walking into Notre Dame Church in the Morningside Heights section of Manhattan, you will more than likely hear the “Hail Mary” and other prayers in French, Spanish and English.

In fact, the closing Mass for the church’s centennial year celebrated by Cardinal Dolan on Feb. 7 was trilingual.

Providing music at the Mass was the Chorale, with members hailing from several French-speaking countries including Benin, Cameroon, Republic of the Congo, Côte d’Ivoire, France, Senegal and Togo, who sang and performed native hymns and dances. The Schola Cantorum sang in English and Latin.

“Being a trilingual parish, we are always open to everyone who comes through the doors,” said Msgr. John Paddack, pastor of Notre Dame since 2012, who previously served for a year as parish administrator. He is also dean of West Manhattan.

“It’s a very diverse parish. One moment I could be speaking Spanish and the next I could be speaking French,” he said with enthusiasm.

There are 350 families registered. With its location near Columbia University and St. Luke’s Hospital, a large transient community brings another 500 people to Sunday Masses.

Masses are offered in French, Spanish and English, with trilingual Masses celebrated on Christmas and the Easter Vigil.

“The spirit among the parishioners is great,” Msgr. Paddack said. He noted that in the past there were divisions among some groups. “That is quickly changing,” he said.

Notre Dame was founded as a mission church of St. Vincent de Paul in 1910. It served the French immigrants who settled in the area. The Fathers of Mercy, a French community of priests, were in charge.

The expanded church building was dedicated on the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, Feb. 11, 1915.

As other ethnic groups settled into the area, they were integrated into the parish. Those groups included Hispanics, Italians, African-Americans and Filipinos, among others. In 1960, the archdiocese took charge of the parish.

Behind the main altar stands a magnificent replica of the Lourdes grotto where the Blessed Mother, identifying herself as the “Immaculate Conception,” appeared to St. Bernadette Soubirous in Massabielle, France.

The grotto, marking the place of the parish’s first altar, holds a statue of St. Bernadette. The parish has water from the Lourdes grotto from France available, as well as candles to light in prayer.

“The grotto is important to every single parishioner. They are absolutely in love with it,” Msgr. Paddack said.

Other special features of the building include a statue of St. Joan of Arc and St. Thérèse of Lisieux, both beloved French saints. A stained-glass window over the main door on the right side of the church depicts different Marian mysteries.

Tours were offered in the landmark church building during the centennial by the parish—guided and self-guided—and by the Morningside Historical Society. The church was even added to bus tours traveling through Morningside Heights.

The parish has an active outreach to the community. One group is the incredibly active Carrefour Pastoral de la Francophonie that assists French-speaking immigrants as well as other immigrants through a food pantry, coat distribution, French and English language lessons, and more. There are 50 members, with other volunteers offering services when needed.

Both the catechetical and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) are offered in English and French. There are 175 children in the French and 50 in the English catechetical programs. There are 12 French-speaking adults in the RCIA program. They will be received into the Church at the Easter Vigil.

Serving at a parish with a close affiliation to the Blessed Mother is a blessing for Msgr. Paddack. Since the age of 18, he has visited the sanctuary in Lourdes, France, every other year; he also serves in France over the summer. “It’s been really almost a lifetime of devotion to her,” he said with great affection.

“As we move toward the future, I hope we continue doing what we are doing and continue integrating the French-speaking factions, and all the factions,” he said. “It has been working well, I think we have hit the right note.”

“I’d like to integrate more,” he said.