I love early morning service where the priest knows you by name..Im always there for the 8:00 a.m…read more mass and Im always out by 9 a.m. thats better much as good as it gets. It is a huge and absolutely beautiful church. If you are in the neighborhood, stop by because you will always be greeted with open arms.

Like many of architect William J Brinkman's designs, St Michael is a steel-framed structure. IMHO…read moreBrinkman fashioned the church's top heavy belltower-with-steeple to showcase the strength of the technique.

Wonderful Catholic community where you always feel welcome and wanted. We came out here in a light…read moresnowstorm for a Fish Fry Friday during Lent, and it was a 5 star event. Some Fish Frys just don't provide a good piece of fish, and that ruins the visit because that is the main reason for a Fish Fry Friday ... but at St. John's the fish was excellent, the sides were plentiful and well brought off, and the community feel in the basement location was a winner. Similar to many other Fish Fry Friday churches, the neighborhood school kids provide the service for delivering food to the tables ... and they did a great job. Besides the fish offering, the nicest extra was a salad bar where you could put together whatever struck your fancy, and could go back for seconds. Nice selection of desserts also, and beer and wine were available for purchase with your meal. In addition to the dine in seating where they could easily seat over a hundred people, there was a big business in to-go orders. There also was live music in one corner of the room where a two-piece mom-and-pop kept up a nice background. Parking was easy-peasy, since the church has a parking lot in back. Next Lent when you are looking for a Fish Fry Friday ... give this place a try.

The church itself is great, it's your typical church. The…read moreschool on the other hand keeps increasing its prices every year and Illinois residents and their children have to dish out almost $8,000 for one year. You can get $500 knocked off by doing volunteer work but not all parents are able to do that. With the yearly cost going up every year by 2028 tuition will be ,near or even over $10,000 for a year. The school doesn't have air conditioning, no central air or window units. Theres a large fan in the hallways and rooms pushing hot air around. Kids are always getting sick as my own had gotten sick atleast 3 times during a single school year. By now it's safe to say I have an issue with the price, but to dig deeper I feel the school doesn't help unlock children's full potential. Teachers don't respond to emails directly even though they tell parents to email them with any or all questions. Kids get a lot of days off these days at this school and for the amount of money that is dished out the school could've bought atleast window unit ACs for the classrooms or even central air many times over. The only upgrade the school had done was a flag pole , a small kiddy park and new heating "which breaks down all the time". I recommend private schools over public school everyday of the week but again the cost is outrageous especially when the school has gotten little to no upgrades.

SFX is a wonderful Catholic Church. The feeling of community is alive & well. Their school is top…read morenotch. Where you fortunate enough to grow up in a communtiy where you knew everybody by name? This is that kind of a community. I couldn't and wouldn't want to raise my kids anywhere else.

My husband and I were married at St. Francis in June of 2010. The Church, itself, is beautiful…read more There is a high ceiling with a mural painted at the top, a large organ in the back balcony, and an alter that is minimally decorated but has marble pillars. The church is clean, well lit, and has a superior sound system. We wanted to be married in a Catholic church, even though my husband is not Catholic. This church was very understanding of our religious differences, and did not pressure conversion, pre-marriage counseling (although they recommended it), or a traditional ceremony. They seemed to understand relationships of the present time. The parish staff was wonderful throughout our entire experience. Maureen, who handles the weddings, was friendly and helpful. She responded to all questions (no matter how simple they were) in a timely manner. We also worked with Allen, the parish music director, who was friendly and also willing to help us out by singing some of the songs himself. On our wedding day, the church also provided us with two "day of" helpers. These ladies were also friendly and helpful. St. Francis has three ministers, so my husband and I went to some masses before to see how each of them conducted mass. We decided on Father Hoffman. He was very kind, and had great sense of humor. The mass he conducted on our wedding day was simple but relevant to our relationship. We couldn't have imagined a better ceremony. The only negative to St. Francis is the amount of money for additional instrumentalist, which is a separate professional company recommended by the church. My husband and I chose a violinist and trumpet player for an additional $200 each. Again, though, Allen was willing to do some of the other parts of our songs to save us money. Our wedding day was beautiful and surpassed what I would have possibly dreamed. I highly recommend St. Francis-Xavier if you're looking for a catholic wedding ceremony.

Dr. Brazier brings the word. You will get spiritually fed when you either come in person or watch…read morevia media.

Love this place call when I need spiritual prayer although I pray for myself and others always…read moreright on point I thank the Lord for people that listen to him so that they can pray for you how you need to be prayed for amen.

This magnificent Old World church built by Polish immigrants is now being well preserved by Mexican…read moreRoman Catholics who are taking great care making sure this church stays as a vibrant anchor of faith in South Chicago. I love the exterior architecture with the front pyramid staircase and lanterns. Exceptional interior architecture as well with the wooden Altar. This was my first time in the church as I passed it and it was open. I picked up a bulletin and out of thirty (30) names of sick people listed for prayer remembrance, there was one Polish person listed, Josie Szajerski and I knew her. How likely was that!? Appreciate this church, they don't build them like this anymore.

My Ziarko family became parishioners in 1954. It included my Polish immigrant Grandparents, My…read moreFather, Mother and myself, I was 5 years old.It also included my Aunt, Uncle and their children. We all moved from St. Peter and Paul Parish, 37th and Wood Street. We kids all attended St. Denis School, under the direction of Sr. Una, Who was our Principal. We had our first communions, confirmations,, Weddings and children's baptisms there. My parents remained active parishioners until 1996, when my Father passed and had his funeral mass there. We remember fondly Fr. Leo Hanley, Fr. Fulmer, Fr. Doyle, Fr. Bowman, The many Sisters who taught us! I Thank God for this blessing bestowed upon my Chicago Catholic Family!

I've really enjoyed my time at St. Denis. Very accepting people, faithful to tradition without…read morebeing all snide and arrogant about it. Not a "traditional" parish, guess many would call them "liberal" but their theology is nevertheless entirely orthodox as far as I have seen. Lotta older people there but they are very sweet, very warm, and very accepting people. Hey, if you ever want to visit, PLEASE let me know. I'd love to join you for the mass you'd like to attend!

Rating based on: *Architecture…read more *Beauty of Church Property *Church Office Oh, Yelp! You have me discovering and learning so many things about the old neighborhoods that I lived in/near over many decades! MEMORIES St. John's Parish Polish National Catholic Church - for nearly 50 years, whenever I would think of this church, I would think of my good friend's husband. I thought he was a parishioner in younger days. So I gave her a call, thinking they might have some info to share. We haven't chatted for a long time and we were due for a chat anyway. As it turns out, his only connection to the church was an aunt that went there--years ago. They didn't have any extra info about the church, but we did have a fun conversation. I have no idea why this thought/church connection stuck in my mind for all these years. I guess I was somewhat fascinated that this church was similar yet different from the Roman Catholic Church and my friend was the first one to bring this church to my attention. I never went to St. John's or bothered to find out more about it--up until now. THE PRESENT For decades, I have driven past this church and never really noticed it--I must have been focused on the road ahead of me... Lol. While WALKING down Kedzie Avenue this past Sunday, I was pleasantly surprised to finally take note of St. John's. I wasn't quite sure if it still was St. John's Parish Polish National Catholic Church. Many of the churches in this area have changed hands over the years. So a couple of days later (9/3 /19), I called the church office. My phone call was answered quickly and efficiently. I talked to Laura and she was very pleasant and helpful. I learned that this is indeed still St. John's Parish Polish National Catholic Church, however, there are no longer any Polish parishioners. The church services are now said in Spanish to accommodate the current parishioners. The church is also known as Parroquia San Juan Bautista. All Masses are said in Spanish. Sunday: 8:00 AM; 12:30 PM & 5:00 PM Tuesday to Friday: 6:00 PM Saturday - May thru September: 6:00 PM PNCC-The Polish National Catholic Church I did a little research to find out a little more about the PNCC. Although the Polish National Catholic Church was founded by Polish-Americans, it welcomes people of all backgrounds. It seems to me, St. John's Parish PNCC/"Parroquia San Juan Bautista" is an example that the PNCC is not just for people of Polish heritage! I liked the timeline about the church history on it's website. I also liked the website's presentation of current information. The Church website is www.pncc.org Wikipedia offers additional information: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polish_National_Catholic_Church SHORT STORY about start of the PNCC - the way I understand it: In the late nineteenth century, dismayed Polish immigrants in the U.S. were not happy with treatment by the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy (mostly German and Irish). Lack of Polish bishops and priests, not being allowed to teach Polish in the Parish schools and disputes over who actually owned the church property led to dissatisfaction and a feeling of exploitation. Father Franciszek Hodur, a Polish immigrant and Catholic priest, understood the complaints and became a leader in the struggle with the U.S. Roman Catholic Church. In 1897, Polish immigrants founded an independent Polish church body. It's headquarters was in Scranton, PA. Fr. Hodur is regarded as the founder and first bishop by the PNCC. In 1914, the Lithuanian National Catholic Church was formed and later merged with the PNCC. The PNCC beliefs are listed on their website. The beliefs I find most interesting are those that contributed to the separation from the Roman Catholic Church : "Parish Owned Property Church property is owned by the people who purchase, build and maintain it" "Language of Worship Masses are celebrated in the language of the people, so that all worshipers can understand God's message" Back to St. John's/San Juan Bautista Laura at the Church office was so very nice. She offered to show me the inside of the church during office hours. I hope to be sharing some pictures of the inside of the church in the near future. If you speak/understand Spanish, this seems like a very nice Parish--worthy of consideration and definitely a visit. And even if Spanish is not your language, it is a Church worthy of a visit--but don't wait 50 years like I did for your first visit! God Bless! Church Review #4 Brighton Park Neighborhood - Review #5

This is a gem of a church in the midst of several churches in the neighborhood. The teaching is…read moreright from the bible and intimate. If you are looking for discipleship and growth in your walk this is a great choice!