Museum Highlight- The Saint Peter's Collection

The Jubilee Museum is home to a wide assortment of art from a wide range of eras. With over eighteen exhibits (and counting), we may ask ourselves where to begin to highlight all of our vast treasures? It is fitting, though, that the first exhibit to be profiled is the St. Peter’s Collection, for this was the catalyst behind the establishment of the museum. The room enshrines many of the artifacts that once filled St. Peter's Church on New York Ave., Columbus, Ohio, as well as memorabilia from the priest who built the church- and stood on the corner watching it be torn down.

The exhibit itself may be of local interest; however its sentiments reach far beyond Columbus, to every closed Catholic institution throughout the world. Though it was demolished almost 40 years ago, its memory lives on.

An All-Too-Short History
St. Peter’s Catholic Church was built in 1928 by Msgr. Anthony Schlierenzauer, who remained pastor there over 40 years, until the church’s closing in late 1969 and demolition in May of 1970. Due to its location in the inner-city and with dropping enrollment, the church was quietly sold to a land developer. As part of the deal, the church, convent, school, and rectory were all demolished. Unfortunately, little was done to preserve the sacred art within the buildings; in fact, the high altar was left standing as the wrecking ball tore through the church.

The space that currently occupies it is a Wendy’s Restaurant parking lot. Yet if you go there today, you will see a set of stairs that lead from the sidewalk on New York Ave. to a small section of grass immediately before entering the parking lot. These stairs, and the ones to the left of them leading to the (demolished) St. Peregrine Shrine is all that is left of St. Peter's Church.

Preserving St. Peter's Memory
When Fr. Kevin F. Lutz began The Jubilee Museum, he had a special goal in mind- to recreate as best he could the religious items that were salvaged from old St. Peter’s. (He was a young parishioner and organist at the church when it closed.) When he began in 1998, he had nothing more than a small altar boy stool given to him by his late mother. Yet as news of his museum spread, more and more treasures were brought forth including the church’s stained glass windows, pulpit, sanctuary lamp, missal, photos, and many personal items from Msgr. Anthony.

The most striking element within the St. Peter’s Collection is the stained glass windows that are displayed along the walls of the room. These windows were created by the world renowned Von Gerichten Studies, a local company which had an office on South High Street in German Village (in Columbus), and another office in Munich, Germany. At its height in the 1920s and '30s, Von Gerichten Studies was considered to be the third best stained glass company in the world. The detail in the windows themselves are incredible and show a high quality of craftsmanship. Twenty saints lined up the church (ten on each side), with angels adorning the tops.

The museum was given many of the windows by John Gibbony, a local architect who was among the parishioners who preserved what he could. Unfortunately, all of the windows were in need of repair; some were shattered in numerous places while some had multiple cracks. In 2003, Fr. Lutz gave the keynote address at Stained Glass Association of America’s national conference. (The SGAA is located in Columbus.) Through his heartfelt speech, he was able to provide free restoration of all the saint windows in the museum’s care, which is currently at seventeen.

Other items within the St. Peter’s Collection include a scaled wooden church model. The complete set of the Stations of the Cross found there way back to Columbus all the way from Hardy, Arkansas. The Stations were destined for a church that was never built. Several statues are among the collection as well, including a beautifully hand-carved Pieta. One of the most treasured pieces is a statue of St. Anthony, which stood in the church for many, many years.

Among the artifacts preserved from St. Peter’s are personal items from the life of Msgr. Anthony. His roll top desk, rocking chair, and numerous pictures are among the items displayed. Fr. Lutz credits this saintly man as one of his chief role models as a priest. Beloved by all, many former parishioners have fond memories and stories to tell of the good monsignor.

The Importance of It All
The St. Peter’s Collection is significant for several reasons beyond its historic and artistic value. As was already mentioned, this was this collection that began The Jubilee Museum. Fr. Lutz felt a sense of urgency as he saw many priceless treasures being cast aside with little concern. As he saw his beloved church being destroyed, he knew that he had a special mission to protect and preserve the patrimony of the Catholic Church.

A second reason why this collection is vital to our museum is that it stands as a model for our efforts in attempting to preserve the heritage of our closed Catholic institutions. Although the Jubilee Museum is a joyful celebration of the artistic and cultural history of the Catholic Church, there is also a marked degree of sadness as many items in our inventory have been salvaged from similar wrecking balls that hit St. Peter’s. Many visitors are astonished that such priceless religious art is not located in more churches and other Catholic institutions. Yet the reality of the matter is that much of our museum is made up of items otherwise destined for the garbage heap. We offer the St. Peter’s Collection as a permanent reminder that although the buildings themselves may have been demolished, the Catholic mind and memory continues.