St. Philip Neri parishioners say goodbye to their small mission, the only church many of them have ever attended.

St. Philip Neri Parish: ‘Heartbroken’

Dontavius Moore and Terrain Wells sit outside St. Philip Neri Church after the parish’s final Mass Sept. 27. The two youths said St. Philip is the only church they have ever know. The historically black parish merged with St. Monica in Miami Gardens Oct. 1.

BLANCA MORALES | FC
Dontavius Moore and Terrain Wells sit outside St. Philip Neri Church after the parish’s final Mass Sept. 27. The two youths said St. Philip is the only church they have ever known. The historically black parish merged with St. Monica in Miami Gardens Oct. 1.

BLANCA MORALES | FLORIDA CATHOLIC CORRESPONDENT

Posted: 10.13.09

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MIAMI GARDENS | Most parishioners of St. Philip Neri are heartbroken at the thought of leaving their small mission, which was built in 1952 by and for black Catholics.

“It’s devastating,” said Dontavius Moore, who was raised at St. Philip and attended the mission’s final Mass Sept. 27. “It’s the only church I’ve been to, that my family’s been to.”

He said he grew up in the church’s vicinity and now will have to travel a few extra miles to attend Mass.

As of Oct. 1, St. Philip Neri merged with St. Monica Parish, also in Miami Gardens. However, most of St. Philip’s parishioners said they plan to attend Holy Redeemer, another all-black parish in Liberty City.

By means of a letter, Holy Redeemer’s pastor, Oblate Missionary Father John Cox, extended an invitation to parishioners of St. Philip Neri, as well as of the historically black mission of St. Francis Xavier in Overtown, which also closed Oct. 1.

Father Cox told his potential parishioners that, along with love and prayers, at his church they will find “a place where you will be received warmly, a place where you can praise and pray to God in the style you are accustomed to.”

Archbishop John C. Favalora has said that he hopes the merging of churches will promote more unity among archdiocesan Catholics, and parishes that reflect the multicultural diversity in south Florida.

Terrain Wells, who also was brought up at St. Philip Neri, said “(I feel) bad because St. Philip Neri’s all I know. I got baptized here. It’s hurtful.”

Moore and Wells, both high school students, are not sure where they will go from here.

“Maybe I won’t go to church,” said Wells jokingly. He later admitted, “I plan on being a priest. I want to be a priest.”

“If I get rich,” said Moore, “I will open St. Philip again.”

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