Search
History of our Parish
-
-
Let Us Tell You A Story ...About our beautiful and faithful parish.
Back in the late 1800's, the Catholic community was centered around St. Johns in Goshen, and the need was great to expand.
The parish of St. Stephen the First Martyr was established in 1865, and the first Mass was celebrated here in Warwick on Christmas Day, in a hall attached to the old Waywayanda House.
Our first official church building was purchased in 1867, with Mass celebrated here for the first time on September 18, 1867. The structure was located on the corner of Church Street and Forester Avenue, formerly the Waywayanda House and built by the Methodist in 1842.
As the parish grew, the Presbyterian church in Florida was purchased by Rev. Edwards Byrnes and became St. Edward, dedicated on July 4, 1887.
The building of the "South Street Church" came years later, where our parish remained until the construction of our current church, here at 75 Sanfordville Road. Bishop Austin Vaughn celebrated the first Mass - and Confirmation - here in 1991.
Please scroll down to the bottom of this page to see the timeline of our parish!
-
-
A Reflection of a long-time parishioner
-
BEAUTIFUL, INSPIRING, and AVAILABLE are just a few words to describe St. Stephen's Church.
BEAUTY hits you as soon as you walk into the sanctuary. Behind the large crucifix high above the altar one is greeted by so many well known saints. Directly left of the crucifix is a figure as described in Revelation 12, "A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head." From the description one can see this is a woman of "cosmic significance." (The Mother of Jesus.) Looking further to the far left on the bottom is a young girl, dressed all in red (the red possibly representing her future suffering) kneeling by her mom. The mom and daughter are Mary, the mother of Jesus and her mom, St. Anne. St. Anne has a book on her lap. Perhaps, St. Anne was reading scripture or the Psalms to her young daughter. Personally, I think of the modern day book, "Mary Had a Little Lamb." The line "and everywhere that Mary went the LAMB was sure to follow" is particularly meaningful. St. Patrick is dressed in green right down to his socks. I love that!
High above the Tabernacle is the Holy Spirit. Draping downward is a beautiful blue sash. One could imagine it as representative of Grace, Fruits or Gifts of the Spirit of God.
On the right wall is the depiction of the Nativity. Mary is holding her newborn baby Jesus, the Lamb of God, on her lap while a lamb rests by Mary's feet. To the right is a shepherd who came to adore the Good Shepherd. So much symbolism.
INSPIRATION can be found in these and any one of the saints, as well as numerous statues, as we ponder their beauty and meaning. Create your own thoughts and let them be inspirational to you each time you come to Mass or other prayer and worship.
AVAILABILITY is in the fact that St. Stephen's doors are open for worship 12+ hours, 7 days a week, thanks to our Pastor. This is a rarity and we are fortunate in today's social climate.
-
-
-
-
-
-
Our Parish TimelineFrom our 150th Year celebration - 2015
-
-
-
-
