Battle to Save New York’s St. Vincent de Paul Ends in Rome

THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
By Melanie Grayce West

St. Vincent de Paul, at 123 W 23rd St. in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood, for years served the city’s French-speaking population. PHOTO: STEVE REMICH FOR THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

NEW YORK---An effort to save St. Vincent de Paul in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood has ended with the refusal from a Vatican court to hear any further appeals from the Roman Catholic church’s former parishioners. The decision from the Apostolic Signatura, the Vatican’s highest court, was made late last month and affirms a decision from last year when the court declined to hear parishioners’ appeals at all. St. Vincent sits along a bustling stretch of West 23rd Street and once served as a home for French-speaking New Yorkers and immigrants. The interior was decorated with pieces imported from France, including Limoges items. The parish, however, was merged under one of the archdiocese’s major reorganizations in 2007. It held its final Mass years ago. [link]