https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saint_John_the_Evangelist_Church_(Columbus,_Ohio)
en.wikipedia.org · Accessed September 30, 2026
Supporting evidence (12)
Dominic Church on January 17, 2024, citing dwindling attendance and deferred maintenance costs across aging facilities.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
The diocese held its final Mass in the building on May 12, 2024, and Fernandes formally deconsecrated the church on January 21, 2026, stripping the consecrated space of its sacred status and leaving its future wholly undefined.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
Ginther and completed in 1899, the High Gothic church building was erected with rock-faced vitrified brick.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
The interior was built to accommodate an original seating capacity of 800, crowned by a soaring 32-foot-high altar reredos and illuminated by elaborate stained-glass windows donated by early congregants.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
The sanctuary windows hold deep ties to early diocesan history, featuring depictions of the Four Evangelists as well as an Ascension of Jesus in honor of Bishop Watterson and the Adoration of the Magi honoring Columbus’s first bishop, Sylvester Rosecrans.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
The brick rectory was completed in 1899, followed in 1905 by a dedicated parish school designed by Columbus architect David Riebel.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
John, forming the Community of Holy Rosary-St.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
Within a decade of the union, the congregation was approximately 70% black.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
The church hosted annual commemorative Masses for Martin Luther King Jr.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
George Stallings Jr. during a parish revival in 1986.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
In 1971, the parish established the St.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.
Even after Sunday liturgies ceased in 2024, the school building has continued to house lifeline programs, including a food pantry, adult learning classes, and a free medical clinic sponsored by the Sovereign Military Order of Malta.
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January 17, 2024.[58] The Columbus Diocese stated that this was in part due to low Mass attendance and deteriorating facilities which necessitated millions of dollars of repairs.