The history of Saint Peter Claver Church located at 29, Claver Place, Brooklyn, is inseparably tied to the actions and spirit of its founding pastor, Msgr. Bernard J. Quinn.
Monsignor Quinn, who was born in Newark in 1888, was assigned to the Brooklyn Diocese shortly after his ordination in 1912, and had many small assignments before being assigned to St. Gregory's on St. John's Place and Brooklyn Avenue. There two black women spoke to him about becoming Catholic. Their preparation for baptism sparked his interest in ministry to Black Catholics. In 1916, Msgr. Quinn volunteered to work in black ministry but his deployment in World War I delayed that mission.
On June 18, 1918, Father Quinn was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and assigned as an Army chaplain of the 333rd Machine Gun Infantry Regiment in the Burgundy region, which saw one of deadliest battles of the First World War. He fell a victim of the monstrous war by being gassed along with a squadron of soldiers with mustard poison. After recovering, he fearlessly resumed his priestly duties but suffered the debilitating effects from the gassing for the rest of his life.
While in France, he first learned about St. Therese of Lisieux, when after celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the soldiers on Christmas Day, he returned to his billet and began reading "The Story of A Soul", her autobiography, beginning a special devotion to her. In fact Father Quinn was the first priest to celebrate Mass at her birthplace, now a popular shrine, before she was canonized as a saint. He researched her life and wrote about her in addition to his wartime duties. His experience there deepened his faith as well as his determination to serve the people of Brooklyn upon his return.
In May 1920, Bishop McDonnell assigned him to Our Lady of Mercy on Schermerhorn Street, where he laid the foundations of his work among Black Catholics.
Meanwhile, the Colored Catholic Club, a group of about 20 men and women which had been meeting at Nativity school, petitioned Bishop McDonnell to build a church for the Black community. The petition was lost, and eventually the group disbanded. Later on, Msgr. Quinn met George Wibecan, a former member of the club, and Jules DeWeever, its president. Together they were able to re-organize the club at Our Lady of Mercy.
The group met there for two years while Msgr. Quinn looked for an appropriate site on which to build a new church. A former Protestant church on Jefferson Avenue and Ormond place, which was being used as a depot by the Wescott Express Co., was selected to become the community's new church. Reconstruction began in 1921, and Bishop Molloy dedicated the church in honor of St. Peter Claver on February 20, 1922.
In his first pastoral letter to his parishioners' on June 1, 1922, Father Quinn pledged to "Willingly shed to the last drop, my life's blood for the least among you." Such was the life giving sacrifice of this shepherd to his people.
When Msgr. John L. Belford, an outspokenly anti-black priest in New York, wrote in 1929 in his church newsletter that "negroes should be excluded from this Roman Catholic church if they become numerous," Monsignor Quinn took pains during the public controversy that followed to state his strong disagreement.
"It seems to me that no church can exclude anyone and still keep its Christian ideals," he said, according to his obituary in The New York Times. "The Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion and this, plus the fact that church property is tax exempt, ought to mean that anyone can go anyplace to worship."
The Bedford-Stuyvesant community became famous quickly through Msgr. Quinn's establishment of a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux, to whom he held a great personal devotion. Whites as well as Blacks flocked to the church for the novena as well as for daily and Sunday Masses.
After the church was well established Msgr. Quinn turned his sights to another segment of the community: its children. The need for an orphanage for black children became evident and Msgr. Quinn set to the task of providing a facility. At that time fear and hostility toward the Catholic Church was at epidemic proportions, and the prevailing racism among the people of the area made Msgr. Quinn's task all the more difficult.
In 1928, he established the Diocese's first orphanage for black children, in a converted farmhouse in Wading River, on Long Island, which was then part of the Diocese. The orphanage was destroyed that summer in an arson fire, attributed at the time to the Ku Klux Klan, which was active in eastern Long Island and had openly opposed the building of the orphanage. After being rebuilt, the orphanage was set on fire a second time that same year.
But Monsignor Quinn rebuilt it a second time, this time in concrete and brick, according to a 1929 article in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle with the headline: "New Fireproof Orphanage Will Defy Incendiary." After two devastating fires, the Little Flower House of Providence was dedicated on October 30, 1930.
Almost a year later, on October 26, 1931, Claver Institute was opened across the street from the church building. The institute served the entire Bedford- Stuyvesant community as a school and a recreational center, as well as housing programs for converts. The Institute's auditorium became known as the "Little Apollo" for Brooklyn Catholics and non-Catholics, producing many famous celebrities, including Lena Horne.
With Msgr. Quinn's help, Msgr. James Asip, who was then a curate at Claver, founded Camp Claver, a summer camp for Black children held at Wading River. Activities there included camping and scouting among others. Many seminarians worked as counselors at the camp including St. Peter Claver pastor to be, Msgr. James Hunt, Msgr. John Fagan, and Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua.
Msgr. Quinn was "ahead of his time" with regard to ecumenism, education and racial pride among blacks. He encouraged Black leadership within the church and promoted vocations among Black men. Msgr. William Rodgers, the first native Black priest in the Diocese, was from St. Peter Claver.
Msgr. Quinn also established a short-lived order of Black brothers who helped in running the orphanage and the Claver Institute. The group was denied sanctioning and later disbanded. He also formed the Apostleship of the Sea, an outreach program for Black seamen fashioned after the USO.
Msgr. Quinn died at the age of 52, while undergoing an abdominal operation. As a testimonial to his organizational and administrative skills, the parish continued to run smoothly during his period of failing health. Over 8,000 people attended his funeral, filling the church and school buildings to capacity, and spilling into the street. All of Bedford-Stuyvesant turned out to pay tribute to the man who had the reputation of a saint within the St. Peter Claver community and its surrounding neighborhoods.
According to his wishes, he was buried at the Holy Rood Cemetery, on the grounds of St. Bridget's church, on Long Island, in the family plot, on the remains of his mother. He asked to be buried in his old worn down leather shoes, for he believed that a new pair would serve no purpose in the grave.
The beatification process for this "Quintessential Priest", is in process.
Monsignor Quinn, who was born in Newark in 1888, was assigned to the Brooklyn Diocese shortly after his ordination in 1912, and had many small assignments before being assigned to St. Gregory's on St. John's Place and Brooklyn Avenue. There two black women spoke to him about becoming Catholic. Their preparation for baptism sparked his interest in ministry to Black Catholics. In 1916, Msgr. Quinn volunteered to work in black ministry but his deployment in World War I delayed that mission.
On June 18, 1918, Father Quinn was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and assigned as an Army chaplain of the 333rd Machine Gun Infantry Regiment in the Burgundy region, which saw one of deadliest battles of the First World War. He fell a victim of the monstrous war by being gassed along with a squadron of soldiers with mustard poison. After recovering, he fearlessly resumed his priestly duties but suffered the debilitating effects from the gassing for the rest of his life.
While in France, he first learned about St. Therese of Lisieux, when after celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the soldiers on Christmas Day, he returned to his billet and began reading "The Story of A Soul", her autobiography, beginning a special devotion to her. In fact Father Quinn was the first priest to celebrate Mass at her birthplace, now a popular shrine, before she was canonized as a saint. He researched her life and wrote about her in addition to his wartime duties. His experience there deepened his faith as well as his determination to serve the people of Brooklyn upon his return.
In May 1920, Bishop McDonnell assigned him to Our Lady of Mercy on Schermerhorn Street, where he laid the foundations of his work among Black Catholics.
Meanwhile, the Colored Catholic Club, a group of about 20 men and women which had been meeting at Nativity school, petitioned Bishop McDonnell to build a church for the Black community. The petition was lost, and eventually the group disbanded. Later on, Msgr. Quinn met George Wibecan, a former member of the club, and Jules DeWeever, its president. Together they were able to re-organize the club at Our Lady of Mercy.
The group met there for two years while Msgr. Quinn looked for an appropriate site on which to build a new church. A former Protestant church on Jefferson Avenue and Ormond place, which was being used as a depot by the Wescott Express Co., was selected to become the community's new church. Reconstruction began in 1921, and Bishop Molloy dedicated the church in honor of St. Peter Claver on February 20, 1922.
In his first pastoral letter to his parishioners' on June 1, 1922, Father Quinn pledged to "Willingly shed to the last drop, my life's blood for the least among you." Such was the life giving sacrifice of this shepherd to his people.
When Msgr. John L. Belford, an outspokenly anti-black priest in New York, wrote in 1929 in his church newsletter that "negroes should be excluded from this Roman Catholic church if they become numerous," Monsignor Quinn took pains during the public controversy that followed to state his strong disagreement.
"It seems to me that no church can exclude anyone and still keep its Christian ideals," he said, according to his obituary in The New York Times. "The Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion and this, plus the fact that church property is tax exempt, ought to mean that anyone can go anyplace to worship."
The Bedford-Stuyvesant community became famous quickly through Msgr. Quinn's establishment of a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux, to whom he held a great personal devotion. Whites as well as Blacks flocked to the church for the novena as well as for daily and Sunday Masses.
After the church was well established Msgr. Quinn turned his sights to another segment of the community: its children. The need for an orphanage for black children became evident and Msgr. Quinn set to the task of providing a facility. At that time fear and hostility toward the Catholic Church was at epidemic proportions, and the prevailing racism among the people of the area made Msgr. Quinn's task all the more difficult.
In 1928, he established the Diocese's first orphanage for black children, in a converted farmhouse in Wading River, on Long Island, which was then part of the Diocese. The orphanage was destroyed that summer in an arson fire, attributed at the time to the Ku Klux Klan, which was active in eastern Long Island and had openly opposed the building of the orphanage. After being rebuilt, the orphanage was set on fire a second time that same year.
But Monsignor Quinn rebuilt it a second time, this time in concrete and brick, according to a 1929 article in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle with the headline: "New Fireproof Orphanage Will Defy Incendiary." After two devastating fires, the Little Flower House of Providence was dedicated on October 30, 1930.
Almost a year later, on October 26, 1931, Claver Institute was opened across the street from the church building. The institute served the entire Bedford- Stuyvesant community as a school and a recreational center, as well as housing programs for converts. The Institute's auditorium became known as the "Little Apollo" for Brooklyn Catholics and non-Catholics, producing many famous celebrities, including Lena Horne.
With Msgr. Quinn's help, Msgr. James Asip, who was then a curate at Claver, founded Camp Claver, a summer camp for Black children held at Wading River. Activities there included camping and scouting among others. Many seminarians worked as counselors at the camp including St. Peter Claver pastor to be, Msgr. James Hunt, Msgr. John Fagan, and Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua.
Msgr. Quinn was "ahead of his time" with regard to ecumenism, education and racial pride among blacks. He encouraged Black leadership within the church and promoted vocations among Black men. Msgr. William Rodgers, the first native Black priest in the Diocese, was from St. Peter Claver.
Msgr. Quinn also established a short-lived order of Black brothers who helped in running the orphanage and the Claver Institute. The group was denied sanctioning and later disbanded. He also formed the Apostleship of the Sea, an outreach program for Black seamen fashioned after the USO.
Msgr. Quinn died at the age of 52, while undergoing an abdominal operation. As a testimonial to his organizational and administrative skills, the parish continued to run smoothly during his period of failing health. Over 8,000 people attended his funeral, filling the church and school buildings to capacity, and spilling into the street. All of Bedford-Stuyvesant turned out to pay tribute to the man who had the reputation of a saint within the St. Peter Claver community and its surrounding neighborhoods.
According to his wishes, he was buried at the Holy Rood Cemetery, on the grounds of St. Bridget's church, on Long Island, in the family plot, on the remains of his mother. He asked to be buried in his old worn down leather shoes, for he believed that a new pair would serve no purpose in the grave.
The beatification process for this "Quintessential Priest", is in process.
The history of Saint Peter Claver Church located at 29, Claver Place, Brooklyn, is inseparably tied to the actions and spirit of its founding pastor, Msgr. Bernard J. Quinn.
Monsignor Quinn, who was born in Newark in 1888, was assigned to the Brooklyn Diocese shortly after his ordination in 1912, and had many small assignments before being assigned to St. Gregory's on St. John's Place and Brooklyn Avenue. There two black women spoke to him about becoming Catholic. Their preparation for baptism sparked his interest in ministry to Black Catholics. In 1916, Msgr. Quinn volunteered to work in black ministry but his deployment in World War I delayed that mission.
On June 18, 1918, Father Quinn was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and assigned as an Army chaplain of the 333rd Machine Gun Infantry Regiment in the Burgundy region, which saw one of deadliest battles of the First World War. He fell a victim of the monstrous war by being gassed along with a squadron of soldiers with mustard poison. After recovering, he fearlessly resumed his priestly duties but suffered the debilitating effects from the gassing for the rest of his life.
While in France, he first learned about St. Therese of Lisieux, when after celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the soldiers on Christmas Day, he returned to his billet and began reading "The Story of A Soul", her autobiography, beginning a special devotion to her. In fact Father Quinn was the first priest to celebrate Mass at her birthplace, now a popular shrine, before she was canonized as a saint. He researched her life and wrote about her in addition to his wartime duties. His experience there deepened his faith as well as his determination to serve the people of Brooklyn upon his return.
In May 1920, Bishop McDonnell assigned him to Our Lady of Mercy on Schermerhorn Street, where he laid the foundations of his work among Black Catholics.
Meanwhile, the Colored Catholic Club, a group of about 20 men and women which had been meeting at Nativity school, petitioned Bishop McDonnell to build a church for the Black community. The petition was lost, and eventually the group disbanded. Later on, Msgr. Quinn met George Wibecan, a former member of the club, and Jules DeWeever, its president. Together they were able to re-organize the club at Our Lady of Mercy.
The group met there for two years while Msgr. Quinn looked for an appropriate site on which to build a new church. A former Protestant church on Jefferson Avenue and Ormond place, which was being used as a depot by the Wescott Express Co., was selected to become the community's new church. Reconstruction began in 1921, and Bishop Molloy dedicated the church in honor of St. Peter Claver on February 20, 1922.
In his first pastoral letter to his parishioners' on June 1, 1922, Father Quinn pledged to "Willingly shed to the last drop, my life's blood for the least among you." Such was the life giving sacrifice of this shepherd to his people.
When Msgr. John L. Belford, an outspokenly anti-black priest in New York, wrote in 1929 in his church newsletter that "negroes should be excluded from this Roman Catholic church if they become numerous," Monsignor Quinn took pains during the public controversy that followed to state his strong disagreement.
"It seems to me that no church can exclude anyone and still keep its Christian ideals," he said, according to his obituary in The New York Times. "The Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion and this, plus the fact that church property is tax exempt, ought to mean that anyone can go anyplace to worship."
The Bedford-Stuyvesant community became famous quickly through Msgr. Quinn's establishment of a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux, to whom he held a great personal devotion. Whites as well as Blacks flocked to the church for the novena as well as for daily and Sunday Masses.
After the church was well established Msgr. Quinn turned his sights to another segment of the community: its children. The need for an orphanage for black children became evident and Msgr. Quinn set to the task of providing a facility. At that time fear and hostility toward the Catholic Church was at epidemic proportions, and the prevailing racism among the people of the area made Msgr. Quinn's task all the more difficult.
In 1928, he established the Diocese's first orphanage for black children, in a converted farmhouse in Wading River, on Long Island, which was then part of the Diocese. The orphanage was destroyed that summer in an arson fire, attributed at the time to the Ku Klux Klan, which was active in eastern Long Island and had openly opposed the building of the orphanage. After being rebuilt, the orphanage was set on fire a second time that same year.
But Monsignor Quinn rebuilt it a second time, this time in concrete and brick, according to a 1929 article in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle with the headline: "New Fireproof Orphanage Will Defy Incendiary." After two devastating fires, the Little Flower House of Providence was dedicated on October 30, 1930.
Almost a year later, on October 26, 1931, Claver Institute was opened across the street from the church building. The institute served the entire Bedford- Stuyvesant community as a school and a recreational center, as well as housing programs for converts. The Institute's auditorium became known as the "Little Apollo" for Brooklyn Catholics and non-Catholics, producing many famous celebrities, including Lena Horne.
With Msgr. Quinn's help, Msgr. James Asip, who was then a curate at Claver, founded Camp Claver, a summer camp for Black children held at Wading River. Activities there included camping and scouting among others. Many seminarians worked as counselors at the camp including St. Peter Claver pastor to be, Msgr. James Hunt, Msgr. John Fagan, and Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua.
Msgr. Quinn was "ahead of his time" with regard to ecumenism, education and racial pride among blacks. He encouraged Black leadership within the church and promoted vocations among Black men. Msgr. William Rodgers, the first native Black priest in the Diocese, was from St. Peter Claver.
Msgr. Quinn also established a short-lived order of Black brothers who helped in running the orphanage and the Claver Institute. The group was denied sanctioning and later disbanded. He also formed the Apostleship of the Sea, an outreach program for Black seamen fashioned after the USO.
Msgr. Quinn died at the age of 52, while undergoing an abdominal operation. As a testimonial to his organizational and administrative skills, the parish continued to run smoothly during his period of failing health. Over 8,000 people attended his funeral, filling the church and school buildings to capacity, and spilling into the street. All of Bedford-Stuyvesant turned out to pay tribute to the man who had the reputation of a saint within the St. Peter Claver community and its surrounding neighborhoods.
According to his wishes, he was buried at the Holy Rood Cemetery, on the grounds of St. Bridget's church, on Long Island, in the family plot, on the remains of his mother. He asked to be buried in his old worn down leather shoes, for he believed that a new pair would serve no purpose in the grave.
The beatification process for this "Quintessential Priest", is in process.
Monsignor Quinn, who was born in Newark in 1888, was assigned to the Brooklyn Diocese shortly after his ordination in 1912, and had many small assignments before being assigned to St. Gregory's on St. John's Place and Brooklyn Avenue. There two black women spoke to him about becoming Catholic. Their preparation for baptism sparked his interest in ministry to Black Catholics. In 1916, Msgr. Quinn volunteered to work in black ministry but his deployment in World War I delayed that mission.
On June 18, 1918, Father Quinn was commissioned as a First Lieutenant and assigned as an Army chaplain of the 333rd Machine Gun Infantry Regiment in the Burgundy region, which saw one of deadliest battles of the First World War. He fell a victim of the monstrous war by being gassed along with a squadron of soldiers with mustard poison. After recovering, he fearlessly resumed his priestly duties but suffered the debilitating effects from the gassing for the rest of his life.
While in France, he first learned about St. Therese of Lisieux, when after celebrating the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for the soldiers on Christmas Day, he returned to his billet and began reading "The Story of A Soul", her autobiography, beginning a special devotion to her. In fact Father Quinn was the first priest to celebrate Mass at her birthplace, now a popular shrine, before she was canonized as a saint. He researched her life and wrote about her in addition to his wartime duties. His experience there deepened his faith as well as his determination to serve the people of Brooklyn upon his return.
In May 1920, Bishop McDonnell assigned him to Our Lady of Mercy on Schermerhorn Street, where he laid the foundations of his work among Black Catholics.
Meanwhile, the Colored Catholic Club, a group of about 20 men and women which had been meeting at Nativity school, petitioned Bishop McDonnell to build a church for the Black community. The petition was lost, and eventually the group disbanded. Later on, Msgr. Quinn met George Wibecan, a former member of the club, and Jules DeWeever, its president. Together they were able to re-organize the club at Our Lady of Mercy.
The group met there for two years while Msgr. Quinn looked for an appropriate site on which to build a new church. A former Protestant church on Jefferson Avenue and Ormond place, which was being used as a depot by the Wescott Express Co., was selected to become the community's new church. Reconstruction began in 1921, and Bishop Molloy dedicated the church in honor of St. Peter Claver on February 20, 1922.
In his first pastoral letter to his parishioners' on June 1, 1922, Father Quinn pledged to "Willingly shed to the last drop, my life's blood for the least among you." Such was the life giving sacrifice of this shepherd to his people.
When Msgr. John L. Belford, an outspokenly anti-black priest in New York, wrote in 1929 in his church newsletter that "negroes should be excluded from this Roman Catholic church if they become numerous," Monsignor Quinn took pains during the public controversy that followed to state his strong disagreement.
"It seems to me that no church can exclude anyone and still keep its Christian ideals," he said, according to his obituary in The New York Times. "The Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion and this, plus the fact that church property is tax exempt, ought to mean that anyone can go anyplace to worship."
The Bedford-Stuyvesant community became famous quickly through Msgr. Quinn's establishment of a novena to St. Therese of Lisieux, to whom he held a great personal devotion. Whites as well as Blacks flocked to the church for the novena as well as for daily and Sunday Masses.
After the church was well established Msgr. Quinn turned his sights to another segment of the community: its children. The need for an orphanage for black children became evident and Msgr. Quinn set to the task of providing a facility. At that time fear and hostility toward the Catholic Church was at epidemic proportions, and the prevailing racism among the people of the area made Msgr. Quinn's task all the more difficult.
In 1928, he established the Diocese's first orphanage for black children, in a converted farmhouse in Wading River, on Long Island, which was then part of the Diocese. The orphanage was destroyed that summer in an arson fire, attributed at the time to the Ku Klux Klan, which was active in eastern Long Island and had openly opposed the building of the orphanage. After being rebuilt, the orphanage was set on fire a second time that same year.
But Monsignor Quinn rebuilt it a second time, this time in concrete and brick, according to a 1929 article in The Brooklyn Daily Eagle with the headline: "New Fireproof Orphanage Will Defy Incendiary." After two devastating fires, the Little Flower House of Providence was dedicated on October 30, 1930.
Almost a year later, on October 26, 1931, Claver Institute was opened across the street from the church building. The institute served the entire Bedford- Stuyvesant community as a school and a recreational center, as well as housing programs for converts. The Institute's auditorium became known as the "Little Apollo" for Brooklyn Catholics and non-Catholics, producing many famous celebrities, including Lena Horne.
With Msgr. Quinn's help, Msgr. James Asip, who was then a curate at Claver, founded Camp Claver, a summer camp for Black children held at Wading River. Activities there included camping and scouting among others. Many seminarians worked as counselors at the camp including St. Peter Claver pastor to be, Msgr. James Hunt, Msgr. John Fagan, and Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua.
Msgr. Quinn was "ahead of his time" with regard to ecumenism, education and racial pride among blacks. He encouraged Black leadership within the church and promoted vocations among Black men. Msgr. William Rodgers, the first native Black priest in the Diocese, was from St. Peter Claver.
Msgr. Quinn also established a short-lived order of Black brothers who helped in running the orphanage and the Claver Institute. The group was denied sanctioning and later disbanded. He also formed the Apostleship of the Sea, an outreach program for Black seamen fashioned after the USO.
Msgr. Quinn died at the age of 52, while undergoing an abdominal operation. As a testimonial to his organizational and administrative skills, the parish continued to run smoothly during his period of failing health. Over 8,000 people attended his funeral, filling the church and school buildings to capacity, and spilling into the street. All of Bedford-Stuyvesant turned out to pay tribute to the man who had the reputation of a saint within the St. Peter Claver community and its surrounding neighborhoods.
According to his wishes, he was buried at the Holy Rood Cemetery, on the grounds of St. Bridget's church, on Long Island, in the family plot, on the remains of his mother. He asked to be buried in his old worn down leather shoes, for he believed that a new pair would serve no purpose in the grave.
The beatification process for this "Quintessential Priest", is in process.
Bio by: Eman Bonnici
Inscription
Rt. Rev. Msgr. Bernard J. Quinn
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Records on Ancestry
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New Jersey, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1660-1931
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New York, New York, U.S., Index to Death Certificates, 1862-1948
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U.S., Newspapers.com™ Obituary Index, 1800s-current
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U.S., Veterans Administration Master Index, 1917-1940
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New York, U.S., Abstracts of World War I Military Service, 1917-1919
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