Oldest Active Baltimore Catholic Parish

St. Vincent de Paul Church is a Catholic parish church located on 120 N. Front Street in Baltimore, Maryland. The church was dedicated in 1841 and is "the oldest Catholic parish church in continuous use in Baltimore." The current pastor is Father Richard T. Lawrence.

The church building itself is neoclassical style with brick walls painted white to give it the appearance of wood. Inside there are cast iron columns for support. While the interior has been remodeled several times, the exterior of the church has never been altered.

The history of St. Vincent is entwined with the history of Baltimore itself. It was founded in 1840 by Irish workers who were building the B&O railroad and C&O canal. Fr. John Baptist Gildea was the first pastor when the building was opened in 1841 to parishioners. The Irish immigrants working on these landmarks were a large part of the Catholic community, though membership included those from all social ranks, even slaves. In the 1960's the church was actively involved in movements against the Vietnam war and social changes which helped to attract young activists to the parish and its causes. The church and its members are very proud of the wide variety of backgrounds and cultures that have accumulated over their long and diverse history. St. Vincent is still a growing and active church in 2007.

Besides holding masses for church members, St. Vincent is active in local Baltimore communities in many ways, providing a clothes closet and food pantry, as well as a program called "Friday Hot Meals" in which volunteers serve hot dinners to local homeless persons. The church also offers a wide variety of religious education opportunities for children, teenagers, and adults including classes, retreats, camps, workshops, and discussion groups. St Vincent is also involved in local housing needs including replacing public housing projects with row homes for families. The most recent project is located right on Pratt Street. St. Vincent was an active participant in developing the Heritage Walk, a Baltimore project, and is one of the stops on the tour. Besides being involved in local communities of Baltimore, St. Vincent also has two sisters parishes that they work to help. One is located in Nicaragua and the other in Lithuania.

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