09/26/2026
St. Patrick’s connection to Archbishop Fulton Sheen. Immaculate Heart of Mary (See 1941)
We also have former members from St. Margaret (See 1947)
Copied from Patti Champion:
Archbishop Sheen and Alabama
Even before Archbishop Fulton Sheen began his 16-year tenure as the national director of the Pontifical Mission Societies in the United States, he made his mark in Alabama. He and Archbishop Thomas J. Toolen, then bishop of the Diocese of Mobile, were not just mere acquaintances; rather, they were fast friends. It can be assumed that the friendship put the state on Archbishop Sheen’s radar. To the right are the archbishop’s documented visits, talks, fundraisers, and donations associated with the area now known as the Diocese of Birmingham in Alabama.
1941 — He provided funds to Bishop Toolen for a new parish in Trussville, which he named Holy Infant of Prague.
1941 — The archbishop helped finance the building of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church (now closed) in Hillview, near Forestdale.
1943 — From July 12-18, he gave various talks and lectures in the Birmingham area. The first three nights he lectured to the public in Fieldstown. The next three nights, he gave open lectures in Margaret, then known as Margaret Mines, at Our Lady, Queen of Heaven Chapel (now closed), which he helped build for the local Catholic coal miners. Throughout the week, he spent his days giving talks to local businessmen, meeting with priests, visiting the Birmingham Army Air Base, and addressing a gathering of Catholic Women. On his last day of public appearances in the area, he celebrated Mass at St. Paul’s Church in Birmingham and Holy Infant of Prague before speaking at the culminating event of his trip: a “Mammoth Outdoor Rally” at Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church in the West End neighborhood of Birmingham.
1947 — He dedicated St. Margaret, Queen of Scotland, Catholic Church (now closed) in Birmingham, which was built with $7,000 he donated to the parish. At his request, the church was named in honor of St. Margaret of Scotland.
1949 — After Our Lady of Sorrows Parish burned, Immaculate Conception, a parish for the local black Catholic community, moved to the available property. Bishop Sheen heard the news and financed the building of a church. The archbishop, however, made one request: He wanted the parish’s name to be changed to Our Lady of Fatima.
1951 — He provided financial assistance to Archbishop Toolen for the building of St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church in Montevallo.
1953 — In November, he addressed the Mobile Diocesan Council of the National Council of Catholic Women at the closing gathering at the Tutwiler Hotel in Birmingham. At the time, The Birmingham News reported that the event drew the “largest single audience ever gathered at the Tutwiler Hotel.”
1952 — The main altar for St. William Catholic Church in Guntersville was donated by Archbishop Sheen for the parish’s first permanent church building.
1960 — Sheen visited Birmingham for the third annual Melkite Laymen’s Convention of North America hosted by St. George Melkite Church. He closed the convention at the Tutwiler Hotel with a speech. He also concelebrated the Byzantine Rite Mass in English. During the convention, Sheen presented Fred Melof of West End with a “Cross of Jerusalem” for “his outstanding service as a layman to his church.”
This fall will prove to be very exciting for the Pontifical Mission Societies, especially for the local Church throughout the U.S.
