Pennsylvania, out of all the East Coast states, has one of the longest and most robust Catholic traditions.
While other states did all they could to get rid of Catholics — New York made it illegal to be a priest, while Maryland outlawed Catholicism altogether — Pennsylvania managed to stick fairly well to its founding principle of religious tolerance. This principle made it a comparative safe haven for Catholics.
The first Catholics in the state were Jesuit missionaries in the 1600s, who established a mission post in the Conewago region. One account describes the response from the local Susquehanna and Huron peoples:
Over 300 years ago, in 1647, the first Jesuit missionaries journeyed from Canada to Maryland and then to nearby Hanover and Conewago. These missionaries were under the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Quebec and they journeyed south by canoe on the Susquehanna River. Their missionary efforts were so extensive in the colonies that in 1680 two Dutchmen traveling in the colonies of New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland wrote that “there is not an Indian fort between Canada and Maryland where there is not a Jesuit who teaches and advises the Indians.”
The Catholic population quickly grew throughout the 1700s, despite some discrimination even in this relatively tolerant state—Mass had to be celebrated in private homes as Catholic churches were forbidden, and Catholics paid extra taxes and faced other bars to public life.
Thankfully the American Revolution made real tolerance the law of the land, but the early sacrifices paved the way for later generations:
After the Revolution, Pennsylvania's Catholics prospered. Catholic schools and vocations grew. The laity supported their Church… Over the next century, as immigration grew, Pennsylvania's Catholics surged into the national consciousness, entered politics, began to work in mines and mills and built the railroads. While they still faced discrimination in employment and society, their status improved with each decade.
However, the record shows that the real story of Pennsylvania's Catholics began long before in wilderness cabins and Old Philadelphia. It began with families who opened their homes as Mass Houses or who kept their faith in spite of test oaths and taxes and protests from civil authorities. Today's Catholics will forever be in their debt both as a public church and as individuals whose ancestors gave us a heritage of faith that continues to this day.
Today around 3.3 million Catholics make the Keystone State their home, about a quarter of the total population.
If you’re one of them, or find yourself visiting, check out these remarkable Catholic places.
Historically and culturally important sites
1The National Shrine of Our Lady of Czestochowa, Doylestown
Founded in 1955, this shrine honors the Catholic faith of many Polish-Americans, as Poland had been Catholic for 1,000 years at the time of the shrine’s 1966 dedication. The shrine houses a replica of the famous Black Madonna icon from Poland and features beautiful stained glass windows, outdoor Stations of the Cross, a cafeteria, museum, retreat house, and many other features.
The shrine is a center for Polish-American Catholic culture, with an annual Polish Festival and many other events. President Lyndon B. Johnson attended its dedication and St. John Paul II visited the site several times, both as a priest and as pope. Other presidents and public figures regularly visit, notably the prime minister of Poland in 2016.
2The National Shrine of St. John Neumann, Philadelphia
Housed in St. Peter the Apostle Church, this shrine honors the fourth Bishop of Philadelphia, who was canonized in 1977 as the first male American saint. St. John Neumann was known for founding the first Catholic diocesan school system in the U.S. and for his dedication to children and immigrant communities.
The shrine contains his remains, under the altar within a glass-walled reliquary. A museum holds artifacts from his life, including personal items and vestments. The shrine hosts retreats, pilgrimages, and other events throughout the year.
3Shrines of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh
This “site” is a bit of a cheat, as it actually includes six churches and four parishes in one! St. Anthony Chapel, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Most Holy Name of Jesus, St. Nicholas, St. Patrick, and St. Stanislaus Kostka all operate together as the Shrines of Pittsburgh.
If you visit just one, start with St. Anthony Chapel on Troy Hill, home to the largest collection of relics in the world outside of the Vatican. But all are well worth visiting. Each of these churches is a historical and architectural wonder, a testament to the faith of the early immigrants who devoted their personal time to building these masterpieces for God.
4The National Shrine of St. Rita of Cascia, Philadelphia
Founded in 1907, the National Shrine of St. Rita of Cascia is a monument to the life and witness of Saint Rita of Cascia, an Augustinian saint known as a healer, reconciler, and peacemaker.
She is known as the “Saint of the Impossible,” so this shrine attracts pilgrims seeking intercession for difficult situations.
5St. Francis Xavier Parish, Gettysburg
This simple church building is historically important for its role in the Battle of Gettysburg. The church served as a makeshift hospital for soldiers during and after the conflict. An account from the time reports:
So crowded was the Catholic church that the wounded lay in and under the seats and in the aisles. Later, when more arrived at the doors, they were placed in the sanctuary and in the gallery… the men were laid so close together that the attendants could hardly move about.
The front yard of the church served as the surgical operating room, where overwhelmed doctors performed countless rapid-fire amputations.
A young woman of Gettysburg who volunteered as a nurse (and eventually met her husband through this work) reported the courage and honor of the wounded:
During that long, trying summer, I was treated with the greatest courtesy and kindness by the soldiers. Not one, in either Army, ever addressed me except in the most respectful manner. They were men. They bore their suffering in the hospitals with the same matchless courage and fortitude with which they met the dangers and endured the hardships of army life. Their patience was marvelous. I never heard a murmur. Truly, we shall not look upon their like again.
If you are interested in Civil War history or the history of the region, don’t miss the details in this record.
Bonus: Old St. Joseph’s Church, Philadelphia
While it is contested whether this church or the Conewago Chapel in Hanover is the oldest Catholic church in Pennsylvania, it is certain that Old St. Joseph's is the oldest in Philadelphia and one of the oldest in the U.S.
Founded by Jesuits in 1733, the church was a symbol of religious freedom in colonial America and a fountainhead for great religious growth:
As the birthplace of the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution, Philadelphia was also the seedbed of Enlightenment values that shaped America’s religious history… No where else could Catholics enjoy public worship and growth to the extent possible in 18th century Philadelphia… It was also the home base for Jesuit circuit riders and eight Catholic dioceses trace their heritage to Jesuit missionaries from Old St. Joseph’s.
