St. Francis Seraph Ministries

“How the parish succeeds is its real history, the kind of history one would like to know.” St. Francis Seraph Church in Cincinnati, Ohio, truly embodies that kind of history.

Since 1859, the Franciscan Friars have been present, at the corner of Liberty and Vine Streets in Cincinnati’s historic Over-the-Rhine neighborhood, offering a “Church home” for thousands of Catholics and others seeking God. All year long in 2009 we are marking 150 years of God’s blessings as a parish and ministries.

In its 150th Jubilee Year, St. Francis Seraph Parish is celebrating with a series of events for our parishioners and our neighborhood. You are welcome to join us at events planned for the rest of the year.

St. Francis Seraph is a Catholic faith community. We are called to serve with and among the people of Over-the-Rhine. Our mission is to share the powerful love of Jesus Christ that changes lives and communities. In the spirit of St. Francis we proclaim the Gospel through worship, education, and social justice.

WHO WE ARE
We are a Catholic faith community called to serve with and among the people of Over-the-Rhine. St. Francis Seraph Ministries is a not-for-profit organization established by the friars of the Franciscan Province of St. John the Baptist. In the spirit of St. Francis, we strive to proclaim the Gospel through worship, education and social justice.

Invited to Cincinnati by Bishop John Baptist Purcell in 1844, the Franciscan friars, from the Province of St. Leopold, Tyrol, Austria, answered his call to help meet the needs of the great number of German Catholics who had been coming to the city since 1830. Bishop James F. Wood of Philadelphia consecrated St. Francis Seraph Church, the principal church of the Province of St. John the Baptist, on December 18, 1859.

As members of the Order of Friars Minor, a Franciscan brotherhood, the friars of St. John the Baptist Province are inspired by the 13th century example of St. Francis of Assisi. The friars serve the Catholic Church as brothers and priests, devoting their lives to the search for God in a communal life of poverty, prayer, and service to others.

We are located at the Northwest corner of Liberty and Vine Streets. The church is handicap accessible. The handicap entrance to the church is on the east side of the church on Liberty Street, through the gate between the church building and the garden. The gate leads to the side entrance to the church. Inside, there are rows of chairs and with room for wheelchairs. A ramp provides access to the sanctuary.

Parking is available along Vine Street, in front of the church on Liberty Street, or limited parking in front of the St. Anthony Messenger building on the west side of the church. Please don't block the garage doors in front of the St. Anthony Messenger building because several priests who must get out on Sunday mornings to say Mass at parishes all around the city park their cars in that garage. You can also park in the St. Francis Seraph School lot on the other side of Vine Street or in the Husman's lot next to the school lot. Enter off of Liberty Street onto Moore Street on the east side of the school building.

OUR ENVIRONMENT
A majority of the 12,000 Over-the-Rhine residents are poor and under-educated. Ninety-five percent reside in 3,500 households below the official poverty level. In 1990 the median household income in Over-the-Rhine was approximately $5,000 per year, while the median household of income for Cincinnati as a whole stood at $21,006. Alcoholism, drug dependency, inadequate housing and homelessness are major concerns in the neighborhood.