The Buffalo Mass Mob is coming to Corpus Christi Church on Sunday, August 23, 2015. This marks the twelfth time the local group is staging one its Mass Mobs to raise awareness of historic houses of worship in the city of Buffalo.
Corpus Christi Church, located in East Buffalo’s Historic Polonia, was established in 1898 by Fr. Hyacinth Fudzinski, a Franciscan Conventual friar, to accommodate a rapidly growing Polish immigrant community in one of the most densely populated neighborhoods of Buffalo. The church faced closed closure in 2003 when the Franciscan’s announced they would be leaving. Through the combined efforts of parishioners, local clergy and preservationists, the church was saved from closing when the Pauline Fathers agreed to take over in 2004. Since then, Corpus Christi has seen multi-million dollar restoration to help preserve the church. The church campus is also listed as a state and national historic landmark.
Buffalo Mass Mob was established in 2013. The effort has drawn thousands of people to historic city churches and raised over seventy-thousand dollars for these houses of worship. The Mass Mob movement, started in Buffalo, has been duplicated by over twenty cities across the United States. It has garnered national and international press.
On coming to Corpus Christi Church, Buffalo Mass Mob organizer Greg Witul says “Corpus Christi is a true artistic masterpiece, from the architecture to the stained glass and murals. But unlike a work in a museum, this piece of art was meant to experienced with celebration and music, friends and family. Hopefully with Mass Mob XII we can fill Corpus Christi again and enjoy it as it was originally intended.”
Buffalo Mass Mob XII begins at 11:00am. There will be church tours before Mass starting at 10:00am. Corpus Christi Church will also be celebrating the Feast of Our Lady of Częstochowa featuring music by Canada’s Ludowa Nuta Polish folk group. Afterward, there will be a refreshments, food and raffles tickes for the upcoming Dożynki Polish Harvest Festival for sale inside the church’s social and athletic club.
Corpus Christi Church is located 199 Clark Street, Buffalo, New York, 14212. For more information about the church, visit www.CorpusChristiBuffalo.org. For more information on Buffalo Mass Mob, visit www.BuffaloMassMob.org.
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