Corpus Christi

Corpus Christi parish was founded in 1901.  The parish initially served a predominately Irish population, but soon began to serve predominately African American Catholic residents of the South Side, part of the large migration of African Americans from the Mississippi Valley to Chicago, a piece of the historic phenomenon we call the “Great Migration.” The extant church was designed by Joseph W. McCarthy, a prolific Chicago architect who specialized in church architecture.  Much of the space took advantage of modern skyscraper technology to create a vaulted dome without pillars, and was one of the first sites in Chicago to experiment with air conditioning. According to architectural historian Denis McNamara, the design of the coffered ceiling was inspired by designs used in ancient Roman baths.  The stained glass was designed and produced by the workshop of Bavarian-based Franz Xavier Zeitler, who bested the Louis Tiffany & Co. in his stained glass design at the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair . When the extant church space was constructed in 1932, the New World newspaper, a local Catholic periodical, called it an “object of wonderment” and one of the “finest churches in Chicago.”  It became one of the centers of black Catholicism in the city, with multiple ministries emanating from its campus, including a school and a food pantry.  In the 21st century, it was served primarily by the Nigerian Missionary Fathers of St. Paul, along with Sisters from Nigeria. The parish was consolidated in 2021 with five other predominately black parishes to form Our Lady of Africa.