ST. LOUIS — Lightning struck a storied 135-year-old church Thursday evening on Grand Boulevard, sparking a fire that caused major damage to the midtown monument.Archbishop Burke called this destruction a "great tragedy"; and this will be a sore trial for its new pastor, who arrived in town just this week.
The five-alarm blaze gutted St. Alphonsus "Rock" Catholic Church, dedicated in 1872 and widely known for its trademark limestone exterior walls...
St. Louis Fire Chief Sherman George said he believed the fire started with a lightning strike...
No one was injured in the blaze...
The building is a Gothic structure, with a towering steeple and flanking spires. The church features an array of stained glass, which was largely spared by the fire...
The church was built by the Redemptorists starting in 1867, and has been staffed by that religious order ever since. It is from this church that we got the Tuesday devotions to Our Mother of Perpetual Help.
If you would like to donate to the Redemptorists, click here.
This is a marvelous church, recently featured in Rome of the West: click here for photos.
Before the fire:
I'm a former SLU student who went the Rock a few times. The link you provide for donations is to the Redemptorist Provincial headquarters in Denver. To donate directly to the Rock church, please use the following link: http://www.stalphonsusrock.org/gifts_donations.html
ReplyDeleteI've been enjoying viewing the pictures on your blog, even if I don't appreciate your point of view on many issues. A Kansas alum of SLU.
Mark,
ReplyDeleteThanks for the information on donations, I've updated the link.
I like spouting out my opinions, but it seems that readers most like these photos! Thank you for the compliment and criticism.