Eastern Rite parishes in Nassau County

Several Catholic parishes in Nassau County, Long Island, have their own Eastern Rite exarch or bishop rather than the Latin Rite bishop of Rockville Centre. Two are Ukrainian.

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At 275 Ellison Avenue, Westbury, is the church of St. Andrew Apostle, a Byzantine Catholic Church belonging to the Ukrainian Exarchy (diocese) of Passaic, New Jersey. The parish website is linked HERE. The pastor is Fr. Nicholas Daddona. The Byzantine-Rite church in Smithtown belongs to the same exarchy.

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At 718 Front Street, Hempstead, is the church of St. Vladimir, belonging to the Ukrainian Exarchy of Stamford, Connecticut. An old article in the Long Island Herald offers a photo of the iconostasis and much information. 

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At 1500 De Paul Street, Elmont, is located a cathedral of the Syro-Malankara Eastern Rite. It is the former parish church of the Roman Rite parish of St. Vincent de Paul. Its center is in Kerala, India. Please see Wikipedia at this link. 

Syro-Malankara Catholics in Elmont

Please note this event at what was (or still is partially) the Parish of Saint Vincent de Paul in Elmont.

The Syro-Malankara rite is Catholic and in the USA has its own bishop or Exarch.

St. Vincent de Paul, Elmont

Please see The Long Island Catholic for this January, 2016, news about the use of St. Vincent de Paul parish church as a Catholic cathedral.  Also, please see this lengthy, informative article about the Divine Liturgy celebrated at St. Vincent de Paul on February 14, 2016, and on subsequent Sundays.
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For the first time, the Vatican has created a Syro-Malankara eparchy (Eastern term, similar to diocese) in the United States.  The cathedral or see of its first bishop will be at the church of St. Vincent de Paul in Elmont, which is administered from the parish of Saint Catherine of Sienna, Franklin Square.  The 2015 Official Catholic Directory provides this legal name, "St. Vincent de Paul Malankara Catholic Cathedral Parish" at 1500 De Paul Street.
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Please note the address at the bottom of the website of the new eparchy.  Also, please note this news article about a new bishop of the Syro-Malankara Eparchy. In the sixth paragraph, it refers to Elmont.
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One must distinguish this eparchy from the Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of St. Thomas of Chicago.  Both groups represent St. Thomas Christians of India, which has apostolic roots and long predates the arrival of Western Catholicism (Latin Rite) from Portugal.
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The above announcement is dated January 4, 2016.  From what I saw today (March 3, 2016), the parish of St. Vincent de Paul has not abandoned its location.  Nor is there any outdoor sign indicating the presence of a cathedral.  The parish website is up-to-date and informative. 

Clicking on any photo will enlarge it.  The photos with snow are from 2011.

Since June, 2011, the parish of St. Vincent de Paul, Elmont, has been administered by the pastor of St. Catherine of Sienna parish, Franklin Square.  Please see the diocesan press release linked here dated May 10, 2011.  This is not a merger of parishes, but rather an administrative consolidation. 

The church of St. Vincent de Paul is located north of Hempstead Turnpike, east of the new Elmont Library.  The entrance is via West Gate and north on Robert Avenue.  The intersection of Hempstead Turnpike and West Gate has a traffic signal, and a sign for the church is there.
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The rectory address is 1500 De Paul Street, Elmont, NY 11003, telephone 516-352-2127.  
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The parish was established in 1951.  The parish elementary school opened in 1961, but is now closed.

Above, Robert Avenue ends at De Paul Street.

The above 2011 photo looks west along Hempstead Turnpike towards the new Elmont Library and the principal crossroads of Elmont.  At the right is West Gate, leading via Roberts Avenue to the church.
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For me to write that Vincent de Paul (1581-1660) was an admirable person is an understatement.  One summary of his life is linked here and another here.

St. Boniface, Elmont

Any photo may be enlarged by clicking on it.

The mailing address of St. Boniface Parish is 631 Elmont Road, Elmont NY 11003, telephone 516-354-0715. The parish website is linked HERE, and it is current as of March, 2019.
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The church, rectory, and graveyard are on the northeast corner of Elmont Road and Dutch Broadway. When the parish was established in the 1850's, this location was known as Foster's Meadow, in the Town of Hempstead, within Queens County, as Nassau County came into existence in 1899. The Catholics were mostly farmers, mostly of German heritage. St. Boniface himself was born in England and became an apostle to the Germans. He lived from about 672 to 754. A bas-relief of Boniface stands to the right of the main door of the church, built in 1963.

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An article printed 6.23.2011 in the Franklin Square/Elmont Herald says that the church was first named the Nativity of Our Lord. "In 1857, the building was rededicated and called St. Boniface." The diocesan website gives 1858 as the date of the establishment of the parish.

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Please do not confuse this parish with St. Boniface Martyr, Sea Cliff. That parish is younger, and the patron is a different Boniface.

Stained glass windows surround the pews. Quite a few present extraordinary topics. Above is the martyrdom of St. Boniface in Frisia, now the Friesland, Netherlands. The year was 754.

St. James the Less does not have a Catholic parish on Long Island, so here he is in Elmont, writing a letter. The Bible has a epistle with his name.

I find it difficult to take good photos of stained glass windows; exposure fools me. This window depicts Pope John XXIII welcoming Bishop Walter Kellenberg to the Second Vatican Council. The council opened in October, 1962. John died the next June. The cornerstone of St. Boniface church is dated 1963. In 1976, Bishop Kellenberg retired.

Belmont deanery

The Diocese of Rockville Centre, although highly centralized under its Bishop, is structured with three Vicariates: Western, Central, Eastern. Within Nassau County there are seven Deaneries.  I begin with the Belmont Deanery, bordering Queens County.  Please recall that until 1899 Queens County included the towns of Nassau County.  Until 1957, the diocese of Brooklyn included all Long Island.
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In 1858, Bishop John Loughlin of Brooklyn established St. Boniface parish, now with its church and cemetery at Dutch Broadway and Elmont Road, in an area then called Foster Meadow.  In 1902, Bishop Charles McDonnell established St. Hedwig as a Polish parish in Floral Park and Holy Name of Mary in downtown Valley Stream.

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1913 -- Establishment of St. Catherine of Sienna, Franklin Square.

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1921: Establishment of Our Lady of Victory, Floral Park.  The victory commemorated is that of 1571, one of the battles of Lepanto. 

1926: Our Lady of Lourdes, Malverne

1929: St. Anne, Garden City

1941: Our Lady of Peace, Lynbrook. "Inspired by the world events of 1941, the pastor-founder of the new church suggested that the new church be dedicated to and named Our Lady of Peace."

1950: Blessed Sacrament, North Valley Stream

1951: St. Vincent de Paul, Elmont

The above ten parishes comprise the Belmont Deanery.  Five will sponsor parish elementary schools in September, 2012: St. Anne,  Our Lady of Peace, Our Lady of Lourdes,  Our Lady of Victory, and Holy Name of Mary.  All ten parishes have Faith Formation (CCD) programs.