Pope Benedict XVI helped make Co-Cathedral in Brooklyn a reality

Brooklyn bishops reflect on late former Pontiff’s legacy

January 3, 2023 Francesca Norsen Tate

The front façade of St. Joseph’s Church in Prospect Heights, as pictured a month before then Pope Benedict XVI elevated the house of worship to co-cathedral status. Photo credit: Brooklyn Eagle/Francesca N. Tate

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PROSPECT HEIGHTS — The Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in Prospect Heights became the center of diocesan life thanks in large part to the late Pope emeritus Benedict XVI, who died early morning of on New Year’s Eve.

Shortly before Pope Benedict announced that he would be retiring from the papacy — almost 10 years ago, in February 2013 — he designated a century-old church in Prospect Heights as the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. Founded originally in 1851 and predating the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn, the building that is now home to the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph is the parish’s third, and was built in 1912.

Brooklyn architect F. J. Berlenbach designed the church and the stained glass designer was also a Brooklyn firm: The Alexander F. Locke Decorative Co. The church was built in the Spanish Colonial style and for many years has served the Hispanic and Mexican communities, with the Our Lady of Guadalupe festival being an annual highlight.

The Most Rev. Nicholas DiMarzio, now Bishop emeritus of the Diocese of Brooklyn, had submitted a petition to the Congregation for Bishops, that the Church of St. Joseph be elevated to a cathedral. Bishop DiMarzio received the Ecclesiastical Approbation from the Cardinal Prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Marc Cardinal Ouellet, indicating that the Holy Father had consented to this request. A capital campaign and renovation project were already underway, and the elevation to cathedral status brought in more money, including from several ethnic apostolates.

After the renovation was complete, the house of worship, at 856 Pacific St. between Vanderbilt and Underhill avenues, was officially elevated, in a solemn Mass on May 13, 2014, as the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph.

A year after the dedication liturgy, the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph received the Lucy G. Moses Award from the New York Landmarks Conservancy for its $18.5 million capital campaign and restoration.

The Most Rev. Gregory Mansour, Bishop of the Maronite Eparchy of Brooklyn (which spans much of the East Coast) during his visit with then-Pope Benedict XVI Photo courtesy of Bishop Mansour/ Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn

Bishop emeritus DiMarzio Reflects on Benedict XVI’s Legacy

Brooklyn Bishop emeritus Nicholas DiMarzio, who initiated the request to elevate St. Joseph’s, in a 2013 interview with the Brooklyn Eagle, recalled with fondness Pope Benedict’s 2008 visit to New York City. “Clearly he is a pastoral man,” Bishop DiMarzio said. But DiMarzio also saw how wearing the trip had been on Pope Benedict even then. “One of the problems with the Papacy is that there is a lot of pressure on him,” said DiMarzio. “It’s a physically demanding job that anyone would have problems with—especially when you’re an 85-year-old man and not feeling too well, it’s even worse.”

Bishop DiMarzio told the Eagle at the time that, even with a change in the focus of catechesis (teaching of the Catholic faith) in recent years to focus on values rather than on the structure and traditions of Church history,, “I think it’s his clarity of intellect, his writings, encyclicals, weekly addresses to people. He’s given a clearer understanding of the Church today. He will explain the Church in a way that’s understandable to almost anyone. That will be his legacy.”

Brooklyn’s current Bishop Recalls Benedict’s ‘Genuine Kindness’

Bishop Robert J. Brennan, who just last year succeeded DiMarzio as leader of Brooklyn and Queens Roman Catholics, issued a statement on Saturday after learning of Pope Benedict’s death.

“He made tremendous contributions to the Second Vatican Council as a priest and theologian. Many of his contributions made their way into the documents of the Council, which charted the course for the Church in the modern era. Pope Benedict XVI had a great mind, and his books have inspired me,” said Bishop Brennan.

Brennan added, “On a personal note, ten years ago, in 2012, [Pope Benedict] appointed me an auxiliary bishop for the Diocese of Rockville Centre. Later that year, he received the newly ordained bishops. There was a genuine kindness and gentleness about him. He gave us his full attention and encouraged us in our ministry as bishops.”

Maronite Bishop Reflects on Benedict’s Controversial Stances

When Pope Benedict announced in 2013 he was stepping down, the bishop who leads Brooklyn’s Maronite (Eastern Rite) Catholics, during an interview with the Eagle, reflected on the legacy of the first pope to abdicate in 600 years.

The Most Rev. Gregory John Mansour, Bishop of the Eparchy of St. Maron of Brooklyn, reflected on a 2006 controversy that arose when Benedict gave his famous lecture, known as the “Regensburg Address” The pontiff angered the Muslim world while quoting a source from a Byzantine emperor. Bishop Mansour, who himself has Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian ancestry, clarified that Benedict’s reason for selecting that passage was to get people of all faiths to think more critically about religious history.

“I understand his point, said Bishop Mansour. “Everyone was condemning him for a big blunder. It was not a big blunder, in my humble opinion. He was speaking in objective terms about reason and faith. And he quoted a very shocking quote. But, sometimes in order to teach a lesson, you have to offer something to get people to think. He was getting Christians to think, and to think reasonably that there is never a justifiable reason for violence in the name of God—for any religion.”