On the Western bank of the Mississippi is the fascinating gateway city of St. Louis. What started as a small pioneer settlement in the last decade of the eighteenth century, became the central gateway to pioneers exploring the US interior and heading west in the nineteenth century, led by Lewis and Clark. Today it is a fun filled city renowned for its museums, green spaces, and its toasted ravioli.
St. Louis is also a land of miracles, ornate churches, and missionary promise. It possesses some gorgeous historic churches, two miracles occurred in the city, two important national shrines are located just outside the city boundary, and most importantly, St. Louis was the the lauchpad for Catholic missionaries who spread out from the city to engage the native peoples of the US interior, just as the apostles dispersed from the Upper Room of Jerusalem to all corners of the world.
The Crown Jewel of St. Louis
It is somewhat unusual in the secular press to find a Roman Catholic Cathedral listed among the top tourist attractions in an American city, yet almost any guide to St. Louis will have its cathedral basilica in the top five attractions. Walking through the doors of this Romanesque church, you will soon discover why. It is nothing short of splendid, lined with gleaming colorful mosaics from floor to ceiling. There are over 41 million pieces of glass, marble and stone that form this artistic treasure, making it the largest collection of mosaics in the western Hemisphere.
The cathedral was designated a basilica by St. John Paul II and has been home to several illustrious bishops, including Cardinal Justin Rigali and Cardinal Raymond Burke. New York’s Cardinal Dolan, a native of St. Louis, also served as Auxiliary Bishop. There is a fascinating museum in the crypt telling the Cathedral’s fascinating history, displaying old vestments and some second class relics – the altar and kneeler used by Pope St. John Paul II when he visited the Cathedral in 1999.
A short walk down the street from the Cathedral is the campus of St. Louis University, the second oldest Jesuit university in the United States and the oldest university west of the Mississippi River, founded by Belgian Jesuits in the early nineteenth century. The campus church of St. Francis Xavier – which was once the headquarters of Jesuit missionary activity in this part of America – is open for daily mass, and visitors to the campus should also visit the university’s Museum of Contemporary Religious Art.
Forest Park – St. Louis’ green oasis
The Cathedral-Basilica and St. Louis University are both located in the Central West End, a lovely pedestrian friendly neighborhood in close proximity to the attractions in Forest Park. Forest Park is the green jewel of the city with a number of cultural attractions clustered within it. The Park was the site of the 1904 World’s Fair that first put St. Louis on the international map. All of its attractions are free to visitors including the St. Louis Zoo, the Science Center and Planetarium, and the St. Louis Art Museum with its impressive Egyptian exhibit.
Just beyond the park is the ever popular Delmar Loop, where you can hop the old trolley while perusing the many shops and restaurants that line this historic district. It is also where you will find the star-emblazoned St. Louis Walk of Fame. In the opposite direction from the park are the serene settings of the Missouri Botanical Garden, the oldest continuously operating botanical gardens in the U.S.
Westward Bound Explorers and Missionaries
No visitor can pass through St. Louis without stopping at the foot of the Gateway Arch along the Mississippi River . This is monument to the boundless hope and optimism that has traditionally defined the American spirit. The Arch recalls that it was from St. Louis that Lewis and Clark, and a subsequent generation of explorers, pioneers, and missionaries, embarked to expand America westward to the Pacific.
While you can take the thrilling ride to the top of the Arch and spend hours exploring the Museum of Westward Expansion underneath, the story is incomplete without considering the heroic missionary effort to bring the Good News of the Gospel to the Indian tribes that inhabited the lands west of the Mississippi. The starting point for this side of the story is the other St. Louis Basilica – the “old cathedral” – which literally stands in the shadow of the arch.
When you set foot in the present church, built in 1828, you are entering the first Catholic cathedral built west of the Mississippi River. The parish began in 1770 as a simple log church and grew as the riverfront town rose in stature and there is a museum on-site telling this rich story and displaying treasures unearthed from the earlier churches. The church itself is lined with statues of the great saints of France – from St. Margaret Mary Alacoque to St. Therese of Lisieux – and there are even two large paintings – in the east and west chapels – that were personally gifted by the King of France.
This church holds a special place in the history of missionary activity across the U.S. interior. Many Catholic missionaries, as well as Indian leaders seeking to know God, passed through its sanctuary. At the heart of this expansive missionary effort was the first bishop of St. Louis, Joseph Rosati. An Italian born missionary, he arrived in St. Louis in 1816 and was appointed bishop in 1827, becoming America’s first Italian-American bishop. Under his leadership, missionaries were sent out to engage the native peoples of Kansas, the Rocky Mountains, Montana, Oregon and Washington. The most well known of these was the Belgian Jesuit, Fr. John deSmet, whom Bishop Rosati sent west in response to the request of Salish Flatland leaders who had traveled hundreds of miles from western Montana to request that a “black robe” (Jesuit) be sent to their community. The bishop’s chair and kneeler in the church sanctuary are those that belonged to Bishop Rosati and he is interred in the basilica’s sanctuary.
This part of downtown St. Louis is full of memorable attractions beyond the Arch. For starters, there is the City Museum. It is a somewhat indescribable mix of re purposed building materials used to transform an old industrial warehouse into one of the most memorable museum experiences in America, with everything from tunnels and secret passageways to a rooftop Ferris wheel 10 stories above ground. Not to be outdone, the ornate St. Louis Union Station is a site to behold, with light shows on its vaulted ceilings , an outdoor fire and light show, carousels, a giant St. Louis wheel and the St. Louis Aquarium.
For those wanting to dive deep into US history, there is the St. Louis Old Courthouse right next to the Arch, whose old courtrooms are open to the public and where the first Dred-Scott trial took place. Just down the river is Busch Stadium, home of the St. Louis Cardinals and the Cardinals Hall of Fame and Museum, riverboat rides along the Mississippi River in replica 19th century riverboats, and the National Blues Museum.
Just beyond Busch Stadium is another historic Saint Mary of Victories Hungarian Catholic Church. It was established in 1843 to serve the growing German population in the city and eventually became the parish church for Hungarian immigrants from the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The ornate church houses an impressive relic collection, including one of the few relics in the U.S. of Blessed Charles Hapsburg, the last Austrian Emperor who died shortly after World War I. Other notable relics include the True Cross, a piece of Mary’s veil, and of course, a relic of St. Stephen, the patron saint of Hungary. There is also a statue and relic of Blessed Francis Xavier Seelos, the nineteenth century Redemptorist who preached a mission at this parish in 1865.
The two miracles of St. Louis
Just over a mile from the Old Cathedral is another remarkable St. Louis church, the Shrine of St. Joseph. It was the site of two nineteenth century miracles, including the only Vatican approved miracle in the Midwest.
This historic church, established by the Jesuits, traces its origins to 1843. In 1864, a famous missionary Fr. Weninger came to preach a mission that focused on the life of Blessed Peter Claver, the Spanish Jesuit who became known as the patron saint of slaves for his remarkable missionary work in Colombia, personally baptizing over 300,000 faithful in what was then a hub of the slave trade in the Americas.
One of the women in attendance for Fr. Weninger’s mission, Mrs. Strecker, was so impressed that she encouraged her dying husband to seek help through the intercession of Peter Claver. The next day, Mr. Strecker came to the parish just as Fr. Weninger was blessing the congregation with a relic of Peter Claver. He allowed Strecker to kiss the relic and he immediately regained his strength. Within a few months, he had been restored to full health. This miraculous healing was confirmed and was the second miracle required for the canonization of Peter Claver by Pope St. Leo XIII in 1888, becoming the only Vatican approved miracle in the Midwest.
Go to Joseph!
The glorious altarpiece of the church is framed by a simple but powerful inscription: “Go to Joseph.” This message of the power of the foster father of Christ to seek His intervention is at the very heart of the second miracle that transpired at this church.
In 1866, there was a devastating cholera outbreak in St. Louis, afflicting many parishioners. The parishioners made a solemn vow to St. Joseph that if his intercession protected the parishioners from the epidemic, that they would build a suitable monument in his honor. From that day on, no parishioner who made the vow died of cholera. The promised monument is the altar you see today. It is a replica of the Altar of St. Ignatius in the mother church of the Jesuits in Rome, but with St. Joseph at the center rather than St. Ignatius and the words inscribed: “Go to Joseph.” Known as the altar of answered prayers, it was dedicated by the great missionary, Fr. DeSmet.
The South End
Heading south out of downtown St. Louis, there are two must-do St. Louis experiences. The first is the Soulard Farmers Market, running strong for over two hundred years since it first opened in 1779. Here, you can experience St. Louis at its tastiest, especially the city’s trademark gooey buttercake. And of course, St. Louis is closely associated with its brewing heritage and the makers of Budweiser beer that cannot be separated from the city: Anheuser Busch. A tour of the Budweiser brewery remains one of the city’s top attractions.
With the culinary experiences past you, there are two historic churches in the south end that are certainly worth a visit.
The first is the St. Francis de Sales Oratory, sometimes referred to as the “cathedral of the south end.” Originally founded in the mid nineteenth century for German Catholics, it is a splendid neo-Gothic church with an ornate sanctuary and beautiful stained glass windows. It is operated by the Institute of Christ the King Sovereign and offers daily mass in the extraordinary form. Experiencing the Mass as it has been traditionally offered for centuries is so enriching for the soul and there is no better place than the Oratory – with its ornate sanctuary, soaring ceiling, and remarkable choirs – to participate in the sacrifice of the Holy Mass.
The second is the motherhouse of the Sisters of St. Joseph Carondelet, located in Carondelet neighborhood of south St. Louis along the banks of the Mississippi River. Situated atop a limestone cliff, this motherhouse is testament to a miracle of a different sort in the early nineteenth century. Here in this motherhouse, an order that was born in Renaissance France and nearly wiped out to extinction during the persecutions of the French Revolution in Europe, had a remarkable second birth on American soil. Bishop Rosati invited a few of the Sisters that remained in France to come over to St. Louis and start anew serving the rapidly growing population in the U.S. Starting in a humble log cabin built at this site, the Order experienced stunning growth spreading east into New York, Pennsylvania and West Virginia, and even north into Toronto, Canada. They operated schools and provided care for the deaf and orphans.
The Motherhouse is available for tours, which can be booked in advance, which will take you through the well preserved rooms of a nineteenth century convent and provide an opportunity to pray in the French-style Holy Family Chapel with its lovely tribute to Our Lady of Salette and the complete skeletal remains of St. Aurelia and two other early Roman martyrs.
About seven miles from Carondelet is Grant’s Farm, property once owned by President Ulysses Grant that has now been opened as a free wildlife park for families to explore. Visitors can take tram tours through the park and see various animal shows. Next door is the White Haven estate, operated by the National Park Service, where Ulysses S. Grant lived with future First Lady Julia Dent prior to his election and service as a Civil War general. The home is open to the public and provides a wonderful living history lesson on one of the most consequential figures of nineteenth century America.
The Shrines of Greater St. Louis – St. Philippine Rose Duchesne and Our Lady of the Snows
Just north of St. Louis, at the confluence of the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers is the historic town of St. Charles. This is where Lewis and Clark embarked for their journey along the Missouri River and the boathouse museum in town tells this part of the western expansion story. The charming shops and restaurants of the main street are also connected by a free trolley that runs every 30 minutes through the town.
More recently, St. Charles County was made famous by the story of a teenage boy from St. Charles who miraculously came back to life after being without vital signs for 43 minutes having fallen through an icy lake in 2015. This miracle became the subject of the hit Christian film Breakthrough.
Over 150 years before this miracle, came an equally impressive story of hope and courage as witnessed in the life of St. Philippine Duchesne, who came from France to bring the Society of the Sacred Heart, founded in Paris by St. Madeleine Sophie Barat, into North America. This was central to efforts that involved the Pope, St. Barat, and Bishop Rosati to ensure the needs of the American Indians would be met through the arrival of missionaries such as St. Philippine.
Philippine and her four companions initially landed in New Orleans on the Feast of the Sacred Heart, and then embarked for the St. Louis area, where she established her first school in Florissant to teach native children and the children of French settlers. From 1818 to 1840, she focused her efforts on opening up schools in St. Louis, St. Charles, and parts of Louisiana.
At the age of 72, in 1841, she expanded her missionary activities going into Kansas to work with the Potawatomi Indians. The Potawatomi were forcibly removed from the Great Lakes region and re-settled to Kansas; many of them were baptized Catholics and they had established a parish church in Sugar Creek. St. Philippine came to open up a school to educate them and had a strong desire to continue this ministry further west across the Rockies. Although she could not speak their language, she left an indelible mark and they called her the “woman who prays always.” It was not her words that brought the Indians closer to God, but her prayerful example and the indelible essence of faith she modeled. She only lasted one year due to poor health, returning to St. Charles where she eventually died in 1852. In 1988, St. John Paul II canonized her and her legacy is a network of over 24 Sacred Heart schools across Canada and the U.S.
Visitors to the Shrine of St. Philippine Duchesne can pray at the tomb of St. Philippine, see the remains of the convent that was established here by St. Philippine, including the little cell in which she died. The modern church’s sanctuary is lined with granite, meant to reflect the rough pioneer existence that she led and above the choir loft is a reproduction of the stained glass window from Mound KS where she ministered to the natives; it hung on the facade of St. Peter’s Basilica on the day of her canonization in Rome. It was here in St. Charles that she established the first Sacred Heart school outside of Europe and the first free school west of the Mississippi. She once wrote to St. Barat: “to go to teach the Indian children is a grace – a gift of God, not just a service.”
National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows – Belleville, Illinois
Nine miles from St. Louis and across the Mississippi River in Belleville, Illinois, is the National Shrine of Our Lady of the Snows. Set on 200 acre campus, it is the largest outdoor Marian shrine in the United States.
It is only fitting that in the “Rome of the West,” one would find a shrine dedicated to one of the most fascinating miracles of the early Church in Rome: the miracle of the snow that led to the establishment of the Basilica of St. Mary Major – the first basilica dedicated to Our Blessed Mother in western Christendom. On the evening of August 4, 358, Our Blessed Mother appeared to a wealthy Roman Senator and to Pope Liberius, requesting that a basilica be constructed in her honor on a site in Rome where it would snow the next day (a rare occurrence in the summertime in ancient Rome). Sure enough it snowed on August 5th, and following that snowfall, the Pope and Senator went to that site and Pope Liberius traced the outline of the basilica in the snow. It was constructed soon thereafter. The feast of Our Lady of the Snows is celebrated each August 5th to commemorate this remarkable event.
The shrine campus in Belleville is extensive, with a Lourdes grotto, a re-creation of Tepayac Hill, various gardens and walks, a large ampitheatre for outdoor mass, the church of Our Lady of the Snows, an outdoor Way of the Cross and even a children’s playground.
Day trips from St. Louis
In addition to the sites profiled above, there is plenty more to discover in/around the St. Louis region. Please click here to explore these travel opportunities.
CATHOLIC CONCIERGE 
Leave a comment