CHICAGO — Pope Leo XIV was on Thursday introduced because the Catholic church’s latest chief, guiding greater than 1 billion faithfuls worldwide — and he began his spiritual journey on Chicago’s Far South Aspect.
Leo XIV, born as Robert Francis Prevost, was born in Chicago and raised in Dolton. And as he grew, his household known as the St. Mary of the Assumption parish in Chicago’s Riverdale neighborhood.
Prevost attended faculty by the parish, was within the choir and was an altar boy, based on the Tribune.
The parish began in 1886 with about 30 households, and it held its first Mass in early 1887, based on church data. A brand new church was in-built 1957, and Prevost graduated in 1969, based on the Tribune.
However the parish was mixed with close by Queen of Apostles parish in 2011 because the variety of Catholic households within the space dwindled, based on ChicagoCatholic.com. It’s been closed for years now.
The church at 310 E. 137th St. is vacant and visibly broken, its furnishings gone and with a gap within the roof that may be seen from the road. However daylight nonetheless streams by its stained-glass home windows.
Close by, a burned-down dwelling has sat for months. The realm is dotted with vacant and seemingly deserted properties.
Elements of Dolton have struggled in recent times, and it’s been within the headlines due to former Mayor Tiffany Henyard’s tumultuous tenure.
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However with a brand new mayor and the pope’s election, Dolton neighbors stated they hope the narrative in regards to the city can change.
Photographer Andrew Burke-Stevenson stopped by the church Thursday.
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