The Fordham University Church is a Catholic (Jesuit) church located at

Fordham University Fordham University is a Private university, private Society of Jesus, Jesuit research university in New York City, United States. Established in 1841, it is named after the Fordham, Bronx, Fordham neighborhood of the Bronx in which its origina ...

in the

Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Originally constructed in 1845, the church was initially used as a seminary for the community, and later became part of the university in 1859. Contemporarily, it is the central place of worship and head of the university's campus ministry, which also has various associated

chapel A chapel (from , a diminutive of ''cappa'', meaning "little cape") is a Christianity, Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. First, smaller spaces inside a church that have their o ...

s across the university's three campuses.

History

Establishment

The Fordham University Church was originally built in 1845 as a seminary chapel and parish church for the surrounding community of Old Fordham Village in

The Bronx The Bronx ( ) is the northernmost of the five Boroughs of New York City, boroughs of New York City, coextensive with Bronx County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It shares a land border with Westchester County, New York, West ...

. In 1859, the university was purchased by the

Jesuit The Society of Jesus (; abbreviation: S.J. or SJ), also known as the Jesuit Order or the Jesuits ( ; ), is a religious order (Catholic), religious order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men in the Catholic Church headquartered in Rom ...

s, and the church was absorbed by the university (then St. John's College). It contains the old altar from the current St. Patrick's Cathedral, as well as stained glass windows given to the university by King Louis Philippe I of France. The windows are particularly notable for their connection to a workshop in Sevres, France, where the earliest stages of the

Gothic Revival Gothic Revival (also referred to as Victorian Gothic or neo-Gothic) is an Architectural style, architectural movement that after a gradual build-up beginning in the second half of the 17th century became a widespread movement in the first half ...

took place. The six windows in the nave of the University Church depict the

Four Evangelists In Christian tradition, the Four Evangelists are Matthew the Apostle, Matthew, Mark the Evangelist, Mark, Luke the Evangelist, Luke, and John the Evangelist, John, the authors attributed with the creation of the four canonical Gospel accounts ...

, St. Peter, and St. Paul. Adjacent to the church is the Fordham University Cemetery, where the university's original nineteenth-century Jesuits, diocesan seminarians, students, and workers are interred; the original cemetery had been located on property that now belongs to the New York Botanical Garden, and the graves were relocated to their current location in 1890.

Campus ministry

The University Church is the central place of worship for Fordham's campus ministry; however, there are numerous

s associated with the church on the Rose Hill campus, including the Blue Chapel in Keating Hall, the Sacred Heart Chapel in Dealy Hall, and the St. Robert Bellarmine Chapel at Spillman Hall. Additionally, the Our Lady's Chapel is located in the University Church basement.

Gallery

Image:Fordham University Church by R. Bucko.jpg, Church with statue of Orestes Brownson in the foreground. Image:Fordham University 07.JPG, Interior of the University Church Image:Fordham University Church window detail.png, A window in the church, donated by King Louis Philippe I of France.

Notes and references

Notes

References

External links

Sacred Spaces
at

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fordham University Church University Church 1845 establishments in New York (state) Collegiate Gothic architecture in New York City Gothic Revival church buildings in New York City Roman Catholic churches in the Bronx Society of Jesus in New York (state)