Celebrate 75th anniversary of Saint Leo Abbey Church on January 29
The Saint Leo University community and the public is invited to join in the celebration of the 75th anniversary of the consecration of the Saint Leo Abbey Church on Sunday, January 29.
This historic milestone will be marked by a Solemn Mass at 10 a.m., in the Abbey Church. Bishop Elias Lorenzo, OSB, of the Archdiocese of Newark, will celebrate the Mass.
Everyone is welcome and invited to commemorate this special event at Mass on January 29.
Saint Leo’s beloved Abbey Church was nicknamed “the church that orange juice built.”
“In order to save money, Saint Leo traded boxes of its ‘Abbey Brand’ oranges and grapefruit from its citrus groves to Saint Meinrad Abbey [Archabbey] of Indiana, which operated a sandstone quarry,” states Pioneer College: The Centennial History of Saint Leo College, Saint Leo Abbey, and Holy Name Priory, by James J. Horgan. “The image is somewhat exaggerated, however. Saint Leo provided fruit, not juice. And less than 10 percent of the cost of the church was accommodated in this manner. The bulk of the structure was built of Florida limestone brick, with red cedar from the abbey’s own trees for the interior beams and trim.”
Ground was broken on August 15, 1936, for the Saint Leo Abbey Church, but was often delayed because of war and the need to raise funds. The church was consecrated on January 29, 1948.
Read more about the history of Saint Leo and the Saint Leo Abbey Church here.
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