As we approach the end of our month of stewardship, I thought I would devote a homily to the history of the parish and how stewardship built the building we pray in. Hopefully you will find it as interesting as I did.This church was founded in the spring of 1895, responding to the request from a number of German-speaking people in the area for a new parish. A number of lots, 17.5 in fact, and a building known as the Murdoch mansion were purchased and the first mass was celebrated in the home on July 28th, 1895.
About two years later, a wood frame church was completed and consecrated. It was located behind this present church, somewhere around where the parking lot gate and gym are now. The name was finalized as St. Michael the Archangel, although Corpus Christi had been the first choice. The new church of 1897 held about 160 people and cost about $1800.
St. Michael continued to grow through the years, and by 1910, a transept or wing was added to the church so that it could now hold 320 people. The school continued to grow from 46 students in 1895 to nearly 250 when a decision was made to build a new church. In 1939, Fr. Preuss moved to build this current church that we are sitting in. He had already been pastor for some 30 years, but he was confident that the beautiful new building would be supported by the people and benefit them for generations to come. At the time of construction, there were 350 registered families in the parish. The new church cost around $91,000, which would be equivalent to about $1.4 million dollars in today’s market.
Allow me to highlight a few of the beautiful details of this church, which is now approaching its 75th year.
Windows: Most of the stained glass in the church was crafted by the Emil Frei company. They still operate from their shop in Kirkwood and one of the family is a member of this parish. The Frei company did Stained glass for many churches throughout St. Louis, both catholic and non-catholic. To give you a perspective on the treasure that we have here, the center window above the altar, the image of St. Michael is about 12 sq. ft. If this was built today, it would cost about $1400 a sq. ft. or about $18,000. Such a window, full of detail and skill would take about 3 months to complete. The other windows on either side of the sanctuary, which depict the four gospel writers would cost about $950 a sq. ft. and take about a month each. The other windows in the church, while less elaborate and valuable, still add to the beauty and presence of this wonderful space.
Wood: the exposed beams of the ceiling are made of solid wood timber and fitted together with bolts and pins. On the front of each wood truss is a hand carved face of an angel, perhaps the friends of St. Michael. If you look closely, you might see little variations between each cherub as the craftsman, Alfred Hagemann, labored to complete them.
Arches: There are 24 stone arches and also stone columns throughout the church. They are not facades covering steel or wood supports. They are made of solid Indiana Limestone.
Entry doors: These doors you enter each week are made of solid oak. The front doors lack traditional hinges and are mounted with hand-wrought brackets integrated into the masonry. They each weigh hundreds of pounds.
Altars: the side altars of Our Lady of Perpetual Help and the Sacred heart were imported from Italy and are made from Red Verona Marble. The main altar uses St. Genevieve rose marble, which comes from St. Genevieve, MO and was considered the best american marble at the time.
Finally, we have the reredos. Hand-carved in Germany, it has statues of the apostles as well as the depiction of the crucifixion. Angels and other beautiful embellishments can be found throughout. We can only imagine the skill and time involved in carving and assembling this masterpiece that we enjoy every time we gather here to pray.
Although it seems like a bargain today, the sum for this church would have been intimidating. The Great depression had ravaged the economy and people’s savings about 10 years prior. Hostilities among nations was increasing and World War II was already beginning in Europe. It would have been very safe and easy to settle for the old frame church of 1897. But the parishioners and pastor of St. Michael wanted to do more for God and each other than what was strictly required or practical. They wanted a beautiful church that would glorify God and proclaim their faith. They wanted a building that would not only help them grow closer to the Lord, but would also be well-built and beautiful for generations to come, so that many others could be blessed by their sacrifice and foresight.
This, in a nutshell, is stewardship. Taking a piece of the best of what we have been blessed with and consecrating it back to God. A true steward does this as a way of thanking God for the gifts that have been received. It is not about tax deductions, or status, or even getting something named after us. Those are all bonus items. Stewardship realizes that everything we have is a gift from God; each day of our life, each talent and ability that we have discovered and refined, each dollar and material thing we own, all of them gifts. Stewardship says, “I am going to give a small portion of those blessings back to the Lord” Not the leftovers or things that I really don’t don’t want or need. No, a portion of the best; that is what we give to God.
We see this reflected in this church. Everything is beautiful, well-built from the best materials, and made to last. We have received this church as a gift from the parishioners that went before us. Now this is our time to be stewards, to care for the church, to further her mission, to give a portion of the best of ourselves: our time, our talents, and yes, our treasure. We need to give all three, in the measure God shows us, so that this parish can continue to feed and foster the faith of generations to come. My prayer for you and for me, is that we become better stewards every time we walk in these doors and that generations from now, our faith will be apparent to those who are still praying in this place!
