Ep 3.10: A Polyglot City — Italians, Lebanese, and the Making of Catholic St. Louis

This episode opens with a striking moment in 1916, when Archbishop Glennon celebrates a Requiem Mass for Emperor Franz Joseph and has the announcement repeated in seven languages—German, Hungarian, Bohemian, Slovak, Croatian, and Ruthenian—revealing the extraordinary linguistic and cultural diversity of early‑20th‑century St. Louis. Monsignor and Teresa use this moment to introduce the many immigrant communities whose faith, traditions, and struggles shaped the city’s Catholic identity. The narrative first turns to the Italians, tracing their early arrival from Genoa, the rise and fall of St. Bonaventure Parish, and the eventual formation of distinct Sicilian and Lombard communities. Monsignor recounts the energetic ministry of Father Cesare Spigardi, who founded Our Lady Help of Christians, St. Charles Borromeo, and the first St. Ambrose—and the tensions between northern and southern Italians that slowly softened as both groups settled on the Hill. The episode highlights the building of the present St. Ambrose Church after the original burned in 1921, the founding of Il Pensiero, and the flourishing of Italian Catholic life through schools, processions, and parish festivals.