Carved Right Below The Pediment

Church of St. Ignatius of Loyola, Manhattan

Ad Majorem Dei Gloriam, Latin for “All for the Greater Glory of God,” is carved right below the pediment on the front of the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola in Manhattan. It’s more than the motto of the Society of Jesus. It describes the interior beauty of the liturgical art and architecture. On a recent visit to New York City, my wife, Mary, and I found the limestone church with its classic architecture looking every bit the solid anchor of its upper Park Avenue neighborhood. It was dedicated in 1898 after replacing the church originally founded in 1851 as St. Lawrence O’Toole Church. But in 1966, the parish was entrusted to the Society of Jesus, and the new St. Ignatius of Loyola has been in the care of the Jesuits ever since. Besides spiritual well-being, the care included a major restoration that was completed a year ago, which again highlights the surprising spiritual drama of the interior. The vestibule is exceptionally beautiful, with intricate gilt decoration, a life-size stained-glass portrait of St. Ignatius, whose feast day is July 31, and subdued gray and pink marble. It’s a heavenly anteroom for the beauty inside.

Link (here) to the full article at The National Catholic Register.