www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Photo Gallery St. Mary Byzantine Catholic Church, Mahanoy City, PA

Here are some pictures of St. Mary Byzantine Catholic Church in Mahanoy City, PA. They have two Liturgies on the weekend, and attached to this parish is a parish in Brockton, on the other side of the mountain.

The artwork in this church is wonderful. The paintings on the ceilings and walls were painted on canvas by a priest of the parish and then attached to the surfaces in the 1930s. I do not know when the more 'authentic' icons on the marvelous iconostasis were painted.

There is a very nice shrine to "Our Lady of Mahanoy City" in the back of the church under the choir loft: it pictures the Blessed Mother holding the Christ-child, Who, in turn, is holding a bucket of anthracite coal! I love it! In the background is the iconostasis of the church.

When I was taking these photographs, the sacristan/gentleman and I were chatting, and I said that this place is a gem. He said "All byzantine churches are like this..." Then he ammended that: "Well, the old ones at least."

They sing fairly well, and the pastor, a Byzantine Franciscan, is a good homilist. If you're ever in the area, check it out!

Now our forum historians ought to add a brief history of the place/people!

From the 1949 Silver Jubilee book:

Rev. Anthony Kubek, Pastor

Founded in August, 1890 by a group of two hundred people with the Rev. Theophan Obushkevich as first pastor. The first church was built in 1891; the present structure was completed in 1931 and was dedicated by the Rt. Rev. Gabriel Martyak on November 26, 1931. St. Mary's was the mother church of St. Nicholas Ukrainian Catholic Church, and gave one vocation to the priesthood in the person of the present pastor. It is also the home parish of the late John Z. Smith, organizer and co-founder of the Greek Catholic Union, Nicholas Smith, connected with the U.N.R.A., and Korean Administration and Joseph T. Kershetsky, President of U.M.W. local No. 9.

Approximate value of property $160,000. Population 1117 souls.

Слава Ісусу Христу!

Nice. Too bad the original icons are not present, the ones along the ceiling show devotion. Is the first one on the southern wall Pochaiv?

Fr. Emil Kubek served St. Mary's from 1904 to 1940. He was a prolific author of poetry, short stories and a monumental Slavonic-Rusyn-Hungarian dictionary. He was also an accomplished agronomist: before he left for the US, he was assigned to Snakiv (today's Slovakia) where he taught his parishioners how to raise bees and helped them grow new crops. A true Renaissance man in Mahanoy City PA!

What a beautiful church!

Nice!

Where exactly is Manahoy City?

I may have driven by this church when I was in Pittsburgh.

I believe it is in Schuykill County, Eastern PA.

Ung

You wouldn't have easily driven by this church easily at any rate, it is not on the "main street" of the town, which is PA Rt 61.

But is is true that it is in Schuylkill County, several hours away from Pittsburgh.

This is my father's family church. My grandfather's funeral was celebrated in this church. My Aunt still attends here. I have travelled far and am trying to get back to my roots. Thanks for this resource and inspiration.

Welcome to the forum, leferovich. Hopefully, we can help you get back to your roots.

Many years,

Neil

The exterior photo and that of the iconostasis now illustrate the parish's directory entry, thanks again to Father Jon and his trusty camera.

Many years,

Neil

Fr. Jon: Glad to see that you are "one the road again," chronicling the treasures of Northeastern PA. St. Mary's was served from 1904-1940 by Fr. Emil Kubek, ordained in the Preshov Diocese. He as a true renaissance man: was the author of a Hungarian-Church-Slavonic-Rusyn-German dictionary, major three-volume novel (in Rusyn) and a collection of poems and other writings. Mahanoy City was also the home of a Ukrainian Catholic Church, St. Nicholas, which closed few years ago

John,

Actually, this one is old (Oct '08). I just finished doing the directory entry for St Mary's and posted as a reminder to myself that I'd already copied and used the pics from this thread. (As I go hunting through here for photos, it gets tough sometimes to remember which ones I've already copied.) However, Father Jon is indeed on the road again - as you saw from his posting a few days ago of photos from Nesquehoning.

Many years,

Neil

Oooops! " Starost' ne radost' "!