We often hear that life can change in the blink of an eye, and I experienced that firsthand. It was the evening of Martin Luther King Day, Jan. 18, 2021, the end of a quiet day that had started with morning Mass at St. Patrick’s in Hubbard, Ohio.

Within minutes, staff members who were on the scene called me with the news that the church was on fire. On my way to St. Patrick’s, I called our vicar general, who also informed our newly installed bishop, and both came to the scene of the fire.

As I stood in the church parking lot surrounded by firefighters, staff members and parishioners, all were visibly shaken and upset at what was unfolding before our eyes.

As shepherd of the parish, I was at a loss of words. With every call of “Father,” I was met with tears, fear and sadness. I was not sure of what to say or how to say anything. This was the parish church, a place where so many faith journeys began in baptism, were nourished by the sacraments and where lives were remembered and celebrated in the funeral liturgy.

St. Patrick Church is holy ground for this small part of northeastern Ohio — a place where faith enabled parishioners to call home as they met the challenges on their journey of life and, most recently, the pandemic.

Standing there, not sure of all to be done at that moment, I knew I had to remove the Blessed Sacrament from the church. As I entered the church, thick black smoke prevented me from removing the Eucharist from the tabernacle. A firefighter met me at the door after I was overcome by the smoke and toxic air. After reuniting with parishioners and staff members, I asked firefighters who belonged to the parish to bring the Blessed Sacrament out of the church.

While watching as black smoke came out of the skylights, vents and doors of the church, a sense of helplessness came over me, and I realized that this was out of my hands.

“Lord, Help Us”

I prayed, “Lord, help us.”

Within minutes, news crews were on the scene. Everyone wanted a statement, but my eye caught sight of Msgr. Robert Siffrin and Bishop David J. Bonnar, our recently installed bishop. At that moment, I knew that all would be well. As I embraced my new bishop, a sense of peace came over me, from his prayers, support and encouragement. It was in that moment that I gained a deep strength to lead this parish family.

It seemed like an eternity for those waiting and watching in the parking lot. The firefighters not only brought the Blessed Sacrament out of the church, but were also able to carry out the tabernacle. To get to the Blessed Sacrament, they had to place a ladder over the floor that was caving in. As thick as the smoke was, we were not aware that the sanctuary floor was sunken in. If I would have attempted to get the tabernacle, I would have fallen into the basement of the church.

As the night went on, parishioners and staff returned to their homes with a profound sense of loss, fear, numbness, and a feeling of how could this have happened to us. That night, when I entered the church with the fire chief, we could see the church was destroyed by severe smoke damage. As we made our way into the basement, the devastation was even worse.

The fire was undetermined in its origin, but we believe it to have been electrical in the walls of a basement conference room. The entire room and its contents were incinerated.

Not being able to rest that night, while praying I remembered a song in our hymnal written by a friend, Vince Ambrosetti. The hymn, entitled “A Future Full of Hope,” became the theme for rebuilding St. Patrick Church.

The next day, we carried items not destroyed by the fire out of the sacred Church and made a new worship space in our school/parish center gymnasium.

Although the first Masses on the weekend were marked by tears and disappointment, there was a strong sense of hope. Firefighters and parishioners carried the damaged crucifix, which had hung above the altar of our church, in a beautiful procession into the new “church” — our own Good Friday.

As the weeks turned into months, our parish family and I came to realize that, even though the church building was severely damaged and unusable, the Church of St. Patrick in Hubbard, Ohio, was stronger. We realized that we are the Church, and nothing can destroy our faith and love for God or the ministry and tradition of the Church. We realized our future is full of hope.

Aid and Support

Surrounding parishes opened their doors for the celebration of funerals and weddings. Prayers and financial help came from all around the country. The kindness of so many priests, religious and pastors of nearby congregations helped us to move on. The invitation of brother priests to use their parish church was most appreciated, but almost every funeral for parishioners was celebrated at St. Patrick’s, in our parish center. So strong and undenied is the faith of these believers.

The local Hubbard High School opened its doors to accommodate the parishioners at Easter and this past Christmas, which were celebrated by Bishop Bonnar.

I remember that, as a team, we ministered to the needs of our large parish family. We never shut our doors or were absent from the congregation because of the fire or during the pandemic. Various ministries, outreaches and PSR classes became stronger and filled with Catholics so hungry for faith. As we embraced this devastating blow, I learned valuable lessons. Homilies gave me the opportunity to give one-on-one reports on the progress of the mitigations and rebuilding.

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A Cardinal’s Warning at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame of Paris

Cardinal Robert Sarah, speaking at a May 25, 2019, conference in Paris, after visiting the damaged Cathedral of Notre-Dame of Paris noted the following: “Dear friends, the cathedral of Notre-Dame had a spire that was like a finger stretching out toward heaven, pointing us toward God. In the heart of Paris, it spoke to every man about the ultimate meaning of human life. Indeed this spire symbolized the one and only reason for the Church’s existence: to lead us to God, to point us toward him. A Church that is not pointed toward God is a Church collapsing, already in the throes of death. The spire of the cathedral of Paris has fallen: and this is no coincidence! Notre-Dame of Paris symbolizes the whole West, buckling and crumbling after turning away from God. It symbolizes the great temptation of Western Christians: no longer turned toward God, turning inward upon themselves, they are perishing.”

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I grew as much as my parish family did. We leaned on one another, supported one another, cried, and laughed together remembering the past, but more looking forward to the future.

During the time after the fire to the first anniversary, on Jan. 18, 2022, I had to be available for constant interviews for newscasters, reporters and journalists. The media personnel grew in their appreciation for our faith, and I appreciate their dedication and sincere service. Along with parish staff, I met with contractors, subcontractors and insurance companies, whom we really had taken for granted.

Divine Mercy

I have always had a devotion to the Divine Mercy. I believe the Lord gave us a sign, at least to me. The large picture of Divine Mercy hanging in St. Patrick Church before the fire remained as beautiful as ever, not marked by smoke damage. And the words, “Jesus, I trust in thee,” touched my heart like never before. Through this cross of the fire, our parish community and I have come to believe and share our stories of trust in the Lord, stories that will last.

The paschal candle, which we use for liturgies, is a pillar of fire that proclaims the resurrected Jesus. The paschal candle was not melted by the 2,000-degree heat in the church. This candle is another sign to us that the Lord is with us, and we are not to be afraid. This candle led our candlelight procession from the fire-damaged church to the parish center as we celebrated the first anniversary of the fire.

Day of Remembrance

Emotions were high that day of remembrance. Even though we remembered a destroyed building our faith made us realize that the parish of St. Patrick was not confined to a building or sentimental items. The Church of St. Patrick was where we proclaimed the Gospel of the day and celebrated with the holy Eucharist.

As we ended the anniversary Mass of remembrance, the choir sang a beautiful hymn entitled “You Do Not Walk Alone” by Elaine Hagenberg. It touched every heart gathered. “May you see God’s light on the path ahead … When times are hard / may darkness never turn your heart to stone. / May you always remember when the shadows fall / You do not walk alone.” At the end of holy Mass, all knew that God is here, and we were not alone.

As the hymn “Future Full of Hope” reminds us: “I know well the plans I have in mind for you; / Plans for goodness, plans for peace and life. / From age to age, parent to child. / I give you a future full of hope.”

I am thankful for what I have experienced as pastor at St. Patrick. Although at some points the journey is overwhelming, it is very rewarding. This has made me a better man, a more faithful priest and disciple of the Lord Jesus. I trust in this. Our future is full of hope.

FATHER MICHAEL SWIERZ is a priest of the Diocese of Youngstown, Ohio, and pastor of St. Patrick Parish, Hubbard, Ohio.

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Walking by Faith Together

In Bishop David J. Bonnar’s “Walking By Faith Together” column in Jan. 7, 2022, edition of The Catholic Exponent, diocesan newspaper of the Diocese of Youngstown, he relates how the St. Patrick fire and other challenges can be met with hopefulness. He writes:

“In some ways, the experience of the Hubbard fire became for me a metaphor illustrative of a tension we are facing in some parts of our diocese. There appears to be a tendency to associate our faith more with a building than with Jesus and a community of people centered around him. What the fire revealed to me is that the Church as we know and belong to it cannot be reduced to a building. Even though the church building at St. Patrick has not been in use for a year now, the mission of the parish continues through the pastor, staff and faithful of the parish. This group of dedicated people did not permit the fire to become an obstacle but rather an opportunity.

“The image of those flames inside that holy place also speaks to a fire raging through our local Church that is just as real and consuming. The fire I am referring to is changing demographics, fewer priests and declining financial resources, along with a surplus of church buildings. On many levels, we are attempting to fight this fire and seeking to build a future full of hope. The fire, however, is inflamed by a stubborn rigidity that desires to hold on to what was, rather than be open to what can be. The flames are further intensified by a parochial narrow-mindedness that cannot see beyond oneself or one’s parish.”

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