St. Bartholomew's Church — Attraction in New York

The current church was erected in 1916–17. The original freely handled and simplified Byzantine Revival design by Bertram Goodhue was called "a jewel in a monumental setting" by Christine Smith in 1988. Goodhue modified his design in response to the requirement that the old church portal, beloved by the parishioners, be preserved, with its bronze doors, from the Madison Avenue building and re-erected on the new site. The foundation stone of Goodhue's original design, a vast, unified barrel-vaulted space, without side aisles or chapels and with severely reduced transepts, was laid May 1, 1917 and the construction was sufficiently far along for the church to be consecrated in 1918; its design was altered during construction, after Goodhue's sudden, unexpected death in 1924, by his office associates, in partnership as Mayers, Murray and Philips; they were engaged in erecting the community house, continuing with the same materials, subtly variegated salmon and cream-colored bricks and creamy Indiana limestone; they designed the terrace that still provides the equivalent of a small square, surrounded by the cliff-like facades of Midtown commercial structures; in summer, supplied with umbrellas and tables, it becomes the outside dining area for the restaurant, Inside Park. They also inserted the "much discussed" dome, tile-patterned on the exterior and with a polychrome Hispano-Moresque interior dome, which substituted for the spire that had been planned but never built. Completed in 1930, the church contains stained-glass windows and mosaics by Hildreth Meiere, and a marble baptismal font by the Danish follower of Canova, Bertel Thorvaldsen. St. Bartholomew's was completed at a cost of $5.4 million. The church is known for a wide range of programs. It draws parishioners from all areas of New York City and surroundings. It is the final resting place for actresses Lillian Gish (1893–1993), Dorothy Gish (1898–1968), and their mother Mary Gish (1876–1948).

Saint Bartholomew's Church and Community House was designated a landmark by the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission in 1967, a move opposed at the time by the rector and vestry. Beginning in 1981, St. Bartholomew's found itself the subject of a much-publicized case concerning air rights in the highly-competitive New York real estate market clashing with historical preservation. Some of the members of the parish wanted to replace the community house and open terrace with a high-rise commercial structure that would re-capitalize the parish's depleted funds. Following a series of public hearings, the Landmarks Preservation Commission turned down the plans for a high-rise office building. The church unsuccessfully argued before the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan that the Landmark designation violated their constitutional rights. That decision was appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court, which eventually resolved the matter in favor of the Landmarks Commission in 1991 by declining to...

I don't go to the services here or a lot of the activities but I do volunteer inside here with the Coalition for the Homeless nightly from Monday through Friday. Bart's, as some call it, offers a room for the Coalition to serve dinner to the poor Monday night through Friday night at the 51st Street entrance from 5:30-6:30 before the Coalition goes on their 3 routes at night starting at 7pm. The 51st Street entrance is between Lexington and Park Avenues for the dinner program. (On Saturday and Sunday, the Coalition serves outside the church on 51st Street from 5:30pm-7pm unless it's really hot or really cold outside; then they serve inside.) The church also give them food donations that are an overflow from distribution for their different programs.

Aside from sharing a room and leftover/overflowed food donations to the Coalition, this church has breakfast Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday (don't know the schedule for this but clothes are also given out on Saturday I believe after breakfast and all breakfast days have a sit-down or takeout option), a food pantry on Thursday from 10:30am-2pm (registration and an appointment are required but if you come without an appointment, you have to wait until 2pm to receive what is leftover at the pantry), and a nightly shelter for up to around 8 women from a drop-in center in Brooklyn. The entrance for these programs are also on 51st Street between Lexington and Park Avenues.

Note: this is not wheelchair accessible, but for the breakfast and dinner programs, a volunteer can bring out a bag meal to those in a wheelchair.

Once a year this church has a special fundraising event called Fare Share Friday. It happens the day after Thanksgiving and about 500 tickets are available: 250 on sale for $125 each and 250 for poor people to eat at the event free (typically homeless but not always the case). It's a large sit-down, family style meal that sits 10 people a table: 5 who paid and 5 who didn't. There are 2 time slots available: 4pm and 7pm. The set-up is so the poor and the well-to-do (more or less) can mingle and get to know each other, to be on the same level for a time. About 4 hotels provide the full course meal and table service. Proceeds from the event cover the event expenses and to further fund the church's food programs.

Outside of these activities, I don't know much about this church. For more information about the church programs or questions, visit their website (which I don't know) or look for them on Facebook. They have a phone number and email address but I don't know...

Well, I was hoping the election would not have been mentioned, but it was...too many of us who formerly voted Democratic were on the edge of our seats. As an FYI, I am not celebrating quietly, but not at all. One man can't run the whole country, and while there was a unanimous election result on many levels, it is a defining moment of our political modern times. It is not an action that should disseminate a celebration but a reflection of inquiry. INTRIGUE into our continued division in our great nation. The final words of the victor brought it all together in his final line, though, and it allowed for a moment of reflection. We are all people who define and love this nation and its diversity of thought, inclusion, acceptance, and even ambiguous disagreements that sometimes have more of an undercurrent of agreement than radical division. But we are the Church where The Love Of Christ is at the helm. He is steering this great nation, and with all of my conviction, I believe in my faith, we are a union of goodness. As Christians ✝️ ❤️, we were all given a second chance through Baptism, and as the human condition will allow, we will embrace it for us and President Trump. We are one nation under God. I wish him well and wisdom. Great mass. Saint Barts, NYC does not disappoint. 🙌 🙏 Remember to pledge your version of the copper coins. Support your...