No United State can look back on a richer Catholic heritage than Maryland, so it’s fitting that a historic church housing a lovely shrine to a great saint stands in its largest city.

So I found on a recent visit to the site.

Arriving at a high point on Saratoga Street, I looked up to examine the magnificent steeple of St. Alphonsus Church, home of a shrine to St. John Neumann. I noted that it holds its own even amid Baltimore’s tallest buildings.

The cross at the top served as a beacon, leading me block by block to the church. It occurred to me that this bustling area of the city must have grown up around the shine.

My assumption was right. I later learned that St. Alphonsus Church has been a mainstay of this downtown neighborhood for more than 160 years.

St. Alphonsus began as a Redemptorist parish in 1845. Known as the “German cathedral,” it served the growing immigrant community of the area and was the provincial headquarters for the Redemptorist priests and brothers in America.

In its first two decades, the church was the source of much apostolic activity. As parishioners moved out of the city, numerous missions and parishes were launched in the surrounding area. As well, the priests served as confessors and chaplains for nearby religious communities of nuns, who established an orphanage and a hospital.

Blessed by Holiness

From 1848 to 1849, a saint was pastor here: Redemptorist Father John Neumann.

Three years later, this German priest was ordained bishop of Philadelphia in the sanctuary of this very church by Archbishop Kendrick of Baltimore.

As the story goes, Bishop Neumann wasted no time in accepting the responsibilities of his new assignment. The day of his ordination, he got on a train bound for Philadelphia.

In his eight years of service as that city’s fourth bishop, St. John Neumann established a diocesan-wide Forty Hours Devotion and founded more than 34 Catholic schools.

Nor was St. John the only exemplar of the faith to serve as pastor at St. Alphonsus. Just a few years after he left for Philly, Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos moved in to fill the post.

Known as a cheerful ascetic, this Bavarian priest was loved by the German immigrant community. The lines to his confessional were long and parishioners were moved to action by his inspiring homilies.

Interestingly, for a time, St. Neumann and Blessed Seelos served together as priests at St. Philomena’s Church in Pittsburgh. But St. Philomena’s no longer exists.

So, if Blessed Seelos is canonized — his cause is underway — St. Alphonsus will be the only parish in the country to claim two canonized saints as former pastors.

Cathedral-like Quiet

It’s not an exaggeration to say “They don’t make churches like St. Alphonsus anymore.” Opening the doors, I was struck by the intricate detailing adorning the interior. I walked along the main aisle, my eyes searching every nook and cranny. I didn’t want to miss a thing.

With its ornate marble columns and grand Gothic arches, the parish church has the ambience of a cathedral.

Enormous pillars divide the church into sections. Three wooden confessionals stand on either side. Antique chandeliers hang overhead, suspended from the ceiling by long chains.

I noted that the color on the walls is faded, the dark wood of the pews smoothed from years of use.

The church has witnessed much change in the Church over the years. I realized this as I looked at the marble altar rail and gate before the sanctuary. A statue of St. Alphonsus stands above the brilliant gold tabernacle; he’s flanked by St. Boniface on his left and St. Martin of Tours on his right.

Below them, on both sides, are rows of smaller statues of other saints. Many of them were unfamiliar to me, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t ask for their heavenly intercession before God.

The dedication of the people who built this house of God is evident in every square foot. Clearly theirs was a labor of love.

The church they built stone by stone has an Old-World feel. Did it have that atmosphere even when it was new? I thought of the generations, one after the next, who have been baptized, married and mourned inside this historic place.

The Masses March On

In 1917, the Redemptorists moved out of St. Alphonsus and the Lithuanian Catholics moved in. The parish became a Lithuanian national parish. Under the guidance of Father Louis Mendelis, who served the parish for more than 35 years, a weekly novena to Our Lady of the Miraculous Medal began in 1935.

During the years of World War II, the church was packed with thousands of people attending the novena. The novena is still a weekly devotion at the parish today.

In 1973, the church was declared a national historic monument.

Today the church has fewer than 600 registered parishioners, many of whom are spread throughout Maryland. In 1994, the church was designated an archdiocesan shrine. The church still serves a small but faithful community at its noon weekday Mass.

While the downtown demographics of Baltimore have changed over the years, the face of St. Alphonsus has not. Its tall, reaching arches and beautiful stained-glass windows speak of a time when the church was the social and spiritual center of the neighborhood.

Its worn wooden pews tell the story of countless humble souls who, over the years, have stopped in to implore God for help in living holy lives. And then there have been those who have come to praise God, thank him or ask him for some favor, healing or blessing.

The day I visited, I realized that I now have a place among them.

May this sacred site continue to serve as a refuge of Catholic prayer in this, the biggest and most famous city in “Mary’s land.”

Eddie O’Neill lives in

Green Bay, Wisconsin.

Planning Your Visit

Weekday Masses are celebrated at 7:15 a.m. and 12:10 p.m. Sunday Masses are celebrated in English, Lithuanian and Latin (Tridentine Rite). For Mass times, along with a schedule of Eucharistic adoration and other devotions, call (410) 685-6090 or visit stalphonsusbalt.org on the Internet.

Getting There

The church’s address is 114 Saratoga St., Baltimore, Md., 21201. For directions, call (410) 685-6090 or visit stalphonsusbalt.org on the Internet.