St. Malachi Parish sits at 2459 Washington Avenue on Cleveland's near west side, just north of West 25th Street and Detroit Avenue. The parish has welcomed worshipers and served the surrounding neighborhood, once known as the Old Angle, since 1865. Today the parish describes itself as "a Eucharistic People, United in Prayer, Welcoming to All and Serving the Poor." That mission shows up not only at the altar but also at the doors of the parish hall, where the Monday Night Meal has fed hundreds of neighbors each week for more than forty years.
A Parish of the Old Angle
St. Malachi Church was built in 1865 to serve the Irish immigrant families who settled around Irishtown Bend, the curve of the Cuyahoga where laborers loaded and unloaded boats along Lake Erie. The neighborhood became known as the Old Angle and, over time, as part of the West Shoreway. Fr. James Molony, pastor from 1865 to 1903, was known for his practice of standing in the doorway of neighborhood taverns on Saturday paydays, simply watching, so drinkers would see him and quietly leave with pay still in their pockets to bring home.
The original church was destroyed by fire in December 1943 and rebuilt under Fr. Otis Winchester, who became assistant pastor in 1947. In 1948 Winchester and seven members of Alcoholics Anonymous founded Stella Maris, one of the first residential recovery centers in the United States, directly across Washington Avenue from the parish. By the early 1940s the parish had begun hosting a weekly AA meeting called "The Angle," which still meets in the school hall on Thursday evenings at 7:30 PM.
Through the twentieth century the parish adapted to waves of population change. In 2010 the original St. Malachi Parish and the nearby Community of St. Malachi merged into the present parish, marking 150 years of continuous Catholic presence in the Old Angle in November 2015.
Mass and Reconciliation
Weekend Masses are celebrated Saturday at 4:00 PM as the vigil and Sunday at 10:00 AM. Weekday Mass is offered on Tuesdays and Fridays at 12:00 noon, with a 12:00 noon Mass on Holy Days as well. The Sacrament of Reconciliation is heard on Fridays at 12:30 PM. The rectory office is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 AM to 4:30 PM, and meetings with the parish administrator or staff can be arranged by calling the rectory.
Serving the Poor: Monday Night Meal and Back Door Ministry
Serving the poor is one of the four pillars of the parish mission. The Monday Night Meal has operated continuously for more than forty years, feeding hundreds of people each week from the parish hall. The Back Door Ministry, coordinated through the parish, responds to neighbors who arrive at the church's back door seeking food, clothing, and a listening ear. Together with the parish's Mother Teresa Ministry, which provides urgent help with rent, utilities, and transportation for those on the verge of homelessness, these efforts reach well beyond Sunday Mass.
Samaritan Ministry and a Long Tradition with Addiction Recovery
St. Malachi's concern for those struggling with addiction goes back to its founding pastor. In the mid-1970s John Miclea, a former heavy drinker who had gotten sober through AA, teamed up with Fr. Paul Hritz to create the Samaritan Ministry, named for the Gospel of Luke's "good Samaritan." The first workshop was held in 1978, equipping clergy and other "first responders" with the knowledge needed to counsel people suffering from alcoholism and other addictions. After Miclea's death in 1987 Fr. Hritz kept the workshops running; after Hritz's death in 2013 Fr. Tony Schuerger carried the work forward.
Today the Samaritan Ministry offers free workshops on the impact of alcohol and other drugs on families, with topics such as how addiction affects the brain and how to find helpful resources. Presenters have included Jim Joyner of Joyner & Associates, Judy Stowe (formerly of the Cleveland Clinic), and Jackie R. Krejcik, a certified spiritual companion and lay ecclesial minister. Free will offerings support the Mother Teresa Ministry. Registration details appear in the parish bulletin.
The Angle AA Meeting
Since the early 1940s St. Malachi has hosted one of Cleveland's longest-running AA groups, known simply as "The Angle." The meeting is held at 7:30 PM every Thursday in the school hall, except for brief hiatuses over the years. It sits within the same campus that also gave birth to Stella Maris across the avenue.
Rediscovering Sunday Morning
The parish has shaped its Sunday schedule around the idea of the Lord's Day. Every Sunday from 10:15 AM to 11:15 AM the parish hosts an hour of spiritual enrichment, religious education, or community building, drawing on Pope John Paul II's apostolic letter The Day of the Lord. A different program is offered each Sunday, and the schedule is published in the bulletin. Light refreshments are always available.
Coffee Hour follows the 10:00 AM Mass in the parish hall and is hosted on a rotating basis by volunteers. The Second Saturday Supper gathers parishioners at a nearby restaurant on the second Saturday of each month, immediately after the 4:30 PM Saturday Mass, for community building. Parishioners pay their own tabs.
Music and Liturgical Ministries
Charlene McElwee, Director of Music and Liturgy, leads a Music Ministry that includes an adult choir, cantors and instrumentalists for all Masses, a Resurrection (funeral) choir that sings at parish funerals, and a seasonal Children's Choir. The Art and Environment Ministry designs worship spaces that reflect the liturgical season, with floral arrangement, decorating, and design skills especially welcome during Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter. Carol Schiro coordinates Art and Environment.
Sunday liturgy at St. Malachi depends on a wide circle of lay ministers, including Eucharistic Ministers, Lectors, Altar Servers, Ushers, Sacristans, Greeters, and Seasonal Liturgical Event Planners. Greeters arrive 15 to 20 minutes before each Mass to welcome parishioners and visitors, direct newcomers around the campus, and offer practical assistance as people come and go.
Children, Families, and the 20s and 30s
The Parish School of Religion (PSR) is run in partnership with St. Patrick and St. Wendelin parishes, the Near West Partner Parishes, with sessions at St. Patrick Parish Club on Sundays from 9:45 to 10:45 AM and at Urban Community School after school on Tuesdays for UCS students. Children's Liturgy of the Word is offered during the 10:00 AM Sunday Mass, and a seasonal Children's Choir sings during the year.
The 20s and 30s Ministry brings together young adults from St. Malachi, St. Patrick, and St. Wendelin for faith sharing, social time, and service. Activities are coordinated with two wider networks, Theology on Tap - West and Young Catholic Professionals Cleveland.
Partner Ministries: Malachi House and St. Malachi Center
Two separate ministries share the Malachi name and the parish's mission to the poor. Malachi House is a residential home that provides around-the-clock care for men and women living with HIV/AIDS and other terminal illnesses. The St. Malachi Center offers programs for children, youth, and families in the surrounding neighborhood. The parish also partners with the MaleSpirit Men's Group, which meets on the parish campus.
Prayer Beyond the Pews: Peace Walk, Friendly Visitor, and Phone Outreach
Once a month parishioners walk from St. Malachi to Public Square and back, gathering on a weekday evening (generally at 7:00 PM, with the time published in the bulletin) for group prayer for peace in the world and in individual lives. Carol Anders coordinates the walk.
The Friendly Visitor program sends volunteers to parishioners who are home bound, in nursing homes, or in hospitals. Visitors offer company, prayer, and Communion; Anointing of the Sick can be requested through the program. Stephanie Pritts, the parish's Pastoral Minister and Director of Religious Education, coordinates visits.
The Phone Outreach Ministry keeps the parish connected to those who cannot regularly attend Mass. Volunteers work in teams, calling 20 to 30 registered parishioners several times a year to share news and invitations to upcoming parish events. Linda Bellini coordinates the calls.
Creation Care
St. Malachi has built a Creation Care ministry around the parish mission, drawing on Pope Francis's call to live less wastefully and with more generosity for the protection of God's world. Parish reflection materials invite parishioners to read the Earth Charter, learn about a local environmental justice issue through the Ohio Environmental Council, and thank community leaders working for sustainability. The parish also partners with St. Patrick on a Lenten Creation Care Calendar.
Getting to St. Malachi
The church sits on the northeast corner of West 25th Street and Vermont Avenue. The parish rectory is the house at the corner of West 25th and Washington, and the school building is directly east of the rectory. Parking is available east of the church and school, with entrances from either Vermont Avenue or Washington Avenue. The parish hall, where coffee hour and the Monday Night Meal are held, is on the same campus. The current parish bulletin is published through Parishes Online and lists weekly Mass intentions, ministry news, and contact information for volunteer coordinators.