Parishioners participate in last Mass at St. Bartholomew Church in Penn Hills

Pat and Tom Zullo walked through the halls of St. Bartholomew Catholic Church in Penn Hills on Monday night, just like they did a thousand times before.

The Penn Hills couple were a part of that house of worship for more than five decades.

Tom Zullo sang in the choir for at least 12 years and their eldest son, Jim Zullo, proclaimed his love to his wife, Lisa, before the congregation in 1996.

However, this Monday evening Mass was different for them and the hundreds of others in attendance. It was their last at 111 Erhardt Drive.

“It felt sad,” Pat Zullo said. She and Tom were a part of the closing festivities. They participated in the procession of gifts for communion.

“You just think of everything that went on,” Tom Zullo said. “We worked the festivals. Both of us counted money here. I sang in the choir, and that’s all gone now.

“There hasn’t been Sunday liturgy here for a couple years for various reasons. The people who we would see every Sunday, many of them we haven’t seen in two years at least. It was really nice to see them. That’s the kind of thing you really miss, the socializing.”

St. Bart’s, as it is often called, is one of four churches in the Christ the Divine Shepherd Parish closing this week.

The others are St. Gerard Majella Church in Penn Hills, North American Martyrs Church in Monroeville and St. Michael Church in Pitcairn.

Those four, along with St. Bernadette in Monroeville and St. Susanna in Penn Hills make up the parish, which was formed via merger in January 2020.

A recent decree from Bishop David Zubik outlined the reasons for the closures, including major repairs needed at the churches, declining membership and financial strain on the parish.

Decrees for all four, along with a letter outlining the process Zubik and the Dioceses of Pittsburgh went through to come to the decision, were posted on the parish’s website christthedivineshepherd.org.

“While I know this announcement is difficult to receive,” Zubik’s letter read in part, “I want to express to you my gratitude for all those who have worked so hard over many years to strengthen and pass on the faith through good works and fervent prayers in these church buildings.”

Strength and faith were major themes in the last Mass at St. Bart’s.

The Rev. Thom Miller stressed how “life is messy” and that it is important to call on God.

“It usually doesn’t go the way we want,” Miller said. “God works all sides of the street. Ask God for strength. … Prayer is the fire of God. He’s so great that he’s acting in each of us.”

Miller navigated the fine line of telling jokes and recognizing special attendees while recalling funerals and other experiences in the church.

Sisters from the Sisters of the Divine Redeemer that were in attendance were honored for their many years of service at St. Bartholomew Catholic School. The school closed in June 2017 after 63 years.

Miller also recalled quotes from various Saints, all with a similar message of perseverance, trust and not letting things bother you.

One being from St. Teresa of Avila: “Let nothing disturb you, nothing frighten you, all things are passing. God never changes. Patience obtains all things.”

Miller was accompanied by Deacon Mike Kelly in the procession of remembrance, a ritual done for the closing of a church. The priest goes to some of the key locations such as the pulpit, altar and reclamation room and highlights what took place.

Among the final sounds heard in the building were the piano and organ skills of Josh Bandish and the angelic voice of cantor Marcia Irr, who has been singing in the parish since 1993.

“I’m OK moving on, but my heart goes out to everybody else that have lived here longer and have had children baptised here, and communion here and marriage here,” she said. “I accept (the closure). I know we have to change, and I know we have to move forward because we have to. … We won’t be able to have Mass if we don’t continue together.”

Irr’s husband, Larry Irr, a former usher, shared in Marcia’s sadness and said they will stay with the parish.

“This is very hard for me tonight,” he said.

Miller and Kelly tied a rope around one of the outside doors at St. Bart’s and declared it closed.

The Knights of Columbus Penn Allegheny Council 4242 hosted a reception after the Mass.

The final Masses for the other three churches all start at 6 p.m. North American Martyrs is on Tuesday followed by St. Gerard Wednesday and St. Michael on Thursday. The decree is effective shortly after midnight Friday.

Regular Masses of Christ the Divine Shepard will continue at St. Bernadette in Monroeville and St. Susanna in Penn Hills.

St. Bart’s history

St. Bartholomew Parish was established in 1950 by Rev. Hugh C. Boyle, then bishop of Pittsburgh.

Its first pastor, Rev. Charles Kerr, celebrated the first Mass in a living room of a residence with 34 parishioners attending on June 29 of that year.

The Penn Hebron Garden Club rented the congregation space as a temporary church before a more permanent house of worship could be found.

Leaders broke ground in February 1951 for a building that would include a temporary church and parish hall. That building was dedicated Oct. 28, 1951.

Work on a school addition began in 1953 and was completed in 1954. The school was dedicated that September.

A permanent church was built in 1965.

The school closed its doors June 2, 2017.

St. Gerard’s history

St. Gerard Majella was established in 1964 by then-Bishop John J. Wright, with the Rev. Francis J.X. Lackner as its pastor.

Lackner celebrated the first parish Mass on May 28, 1964. There were 51 parishioners in attendance in a little house at 704 Hamil Road.

North Bessemer Community volunteer firefighters offered their fire hall for parish services from 1964 to 1967.

Officials broke ground in January 1966 and construction began that April for a new church. The first Mass at the new church was in June 1967.

It was renovated in 1978. Other pastors included the Rev. Richard J. Czapinski, Rev. John D. Brennan and Rev. Martin F. Barkin.

Parishioners celebrated its 50th anniversary in October 2014.