St. Mary of the Immaculate Conception

When I moved to downtown Jersey City three years ago, I chose St. Mary’s to be my parish and it has now felt like a second home to me. What attracted me to become a parishioner at St. Mary’s over other Catholic churches in the neighborhood was the incredibly diverse community. At Mass, there are so many different types of people attending, and I have always thought the parishioners really represent the neighborhood in a wonderful way.
In December 2014, St. Mary’s celebrated its 160^th anniversary. From what I’ve experienced in the past three years since being a parishioner, the church has gone through an evolution and is continuing to do so in a good way. It was previously a part of the «Resurrection Parish» that comprised of five different churches downtown. Most recently it has become a standalone church due to the others closing or separating. Despite the changes, I think our pastor Fr. Helber, parochial vicar Fr. Eustace, deacons, and parish staff are doing a wonderful job bringing the community together and being extremely welcoming to those who are seeking to be closer to their Catholic faith.
St. Mary’s has English (8am, 12pm) and Spanish (10am) Masses on Sunday and throughout the week, as well as a Tagalog (9am) Mass on the 1^st Sunday of the month. I usually attend Sunday’s 12:00pm English mass, which has an awesome contemporary choir. In addition to the services, there are devotional groups to join and religious education classes for children. For the past few months I’ve been attending a weekly adult education class to learn more about Catholicism which has been pretty great. They also host other events such as retreats, parties, and festivals as well.
If you’re looking for a new parish to attend, please come and check out St. Mary’s… and if you see me there please feel free to say hello! I think their motto wraps up things nicely. «Come and join us and create a Christ-​centered community where strangers become friends and friends become family.»