HTA-0609: St. Bridget's Catholic Church — 150 Years in San Francisco

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Summary

Henry reports on St. Bridget's Catholic Church, one of the oldest churches in Northern California, existing since 1863.

Full Transcript

00:02
Since 1863, St. Bridget's Catholic Church has existed in San Francisco, one of the oldest churches in Northern California.

00:12
But then, 17 years ago, it was decided that St. Bridget's Church would have to close.

00:18
The Diocese of California, of San Francisco, decided that.

00:22
And it was a decision that was not easily made, and it was a decision that was not easily accepted.

00:27
And that is the subject of a fascinating book called The Grace of Everyday Saints,

00:33
How a Band of Believers Lost Their Church and Found Their Faith.

00:36
Julian Guthrie is a reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle.

00:39
And this is a story about the church, but it's really a story about people and faith.

00:45
But first of all, the church.

00:46
Why did they shut down this august institution?

00:49
Money.

00:50
Thank you.

00:51
Money is the reason.

00:51
Thank you for joining us, Julian.

00:54
Okay.

00:55
The church needed money.

00:56
The Catholic Church needed money because it had all these aging buildings, buildings damaged by the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake.

01:03
And for parishioners, the answer was the same.

01:05
It was also money, and that was because clergy abuse cases were just beginning to break in the spring of 1994.

01:11
So they agree on one thing, that it was about money.

01:14
Right.

01:14
And the archbishop decided, we're shutting it down.

01:19
The parish did not go quietly.

01:21
No, they did not go quietly.

01:23
And these were supposedly obedient Catholics.

01:26
and they started a crusade in late 1993 that continues to this day.

01:31
It's the longest parish protest in Catholic America.

01:33
It's really an amazing thing.

01:35
It's the most tenacious, resilient group of people I've ever met.

01:39
What was it like at that moment when they had to close the church?

01:43
I mean, when they finally had lost the battle?

01:46
Well, it was just full of drama.

01:48
The parishioners stayed until midnight.

01:50
It was June 30th, 1994, Thursday,

01:53
and they remained outside of their church until midnight.

01:57
They sang songs.

01:58
They lit candles.

01:59
But they sang civil rights anthems.

02:04
They said, this fight will go on.

02:06
And little did they know that it would go on to this day.

02:09
Well, that's the point, is that you've just written this book,

02:11
and it's being acclaimed.

02:13
You've gotten, what, you're on Oprah's list now?

02:15
Yes, yes, thank you.

02:16
So what are we finding out now about this that makes this story still so relevant for us?

02:22
Well, I think really it's about how you find your faith on your own terms.

02:27
These people were locked outside of this church they loved.

02:29
And they thought that this place, this beautiful house of worship, they thought that it held their faith.

02:35
And one of the great ironies of this book is that it did not hold their faith.

02:39
That their faith grew stronger once they were locked outside of this church.

02:44
So they forged this amazing faith on their own.

02:46
It became much more personalized.

02:47
And they still worship every other week, is that right?

02:50
They still meet.

02:51
Yes, every other week.

02:52
And they still have a priest.

02:54
And they still have a priest who was banished, supposedly, from St. Brigid in the spring of 1994.

02:59
But he still is very much a part of this group, Father Cyril O'Sullivan.

03:02
And he's a wonderful priest.

03:03
But it's a really dramatic story, whether you're Catholic or non-Catholic.

03:07
It's a story of faith, but it's just full of great twists and turns.

03:10
It's called The Grace of Everyday Saints.

03:12
It's by Julian Guthrie.

03:14
And you can meet Julian.

03:15
She's going to be participating in Litquake October 13th.

03:18
She'll be at the San Francisco Public Library.

03:20
and her website is julianguthrysf.com.

03:24
What, you're not the only Julian Guthrie around?

03:25
You had to put an SF on me?

03:26
Someone already had it.

03:27
Someone had Julian Guthrie.

03:28
I can't believe it.

03:29
Thank you so much for joining us.

03:30
We're going to take a break.

03:30
When we come back, small but dramatic sculptures,

03:35
beautiful pieces that speak of another era

03:38
but of a modern feeling of mourning.

03:40
We'll tell you about it coming up on Cronk Pro News Weekend.

04:11
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