BY ROSE ADAMS
A popular pastor who revitalized
a struggling Bensonhurst
Church will be
reassigned in January, disappointing
parishioners who
credit him with saving the
church from closure and restoring
it to its former glory.
“I’m upset about his leaving,”
said John Mazzola, a
member of the St. Finbar
Church’s pastoral council
who joined the parish five
years ago. “He turned the
church that was closing into
a church that’s vibrant.”
Rev. Michael Louis Gelfant,
42, was assigned to St.
Finbar Church on Benson
Avenue and Bay 20th street
in 2010, and was instructed
to close down the struggling
house of prayer, that, like
many other Brooklyn chapels,
suffered from shrinking
attendance and financial
woes, he said.
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COURIER L 4 IFE, NOV. 1-7, 2019
“When they transferred
me over here, it was to close
the parish, to shut it down,”
he said, adding that the
church’s school and financial
mismanagement had
driven St. Finbar into bankruptcy.
“It was really neglected
and falling apart.”
But Gelfant said that once
he met the church’s passionate
parishioners, he decided
to turn the church around,
stripping down its staff, cutting
expenses, and attracting
young families to the
historic parish, founded in
1880. Word soon spread that
the church was on the up
and up, and attendance doubled
within six months, Gelfant
said.
Gelfant credits his decision
to return St. Finbar
“back to the people” with the
church’s revival, claiming
that the church regularly
circulated surveys gauging
Rev. Michael Louis Gelfant, who worked to revive St. Finbar Church in Bensonhurst, will be reassigned to a
church in Queens in January, 2020. Photo by Derrick Watterson
members’ satisfaction and
that parishioners launched
a number of fundraising
campaigns that fixed up the
premises. In 2016, extensive
renovations began on the
church, funded by the Catholic
higher-ups and by parishioners’
donations, Gelfant
said, adding that many
church-goers dedicated their
skills and manual labor to
the project.
“It was parishionerbased,
and we were able to
save $350,000,” Gelfant said.
The renovations included
the installation of a new
high altar, marblework, and
woodwork, as well as repairs
to the organ, all of which parishioners
helped complete,
according to Gelfant.
And while congregants
are grateful for the reverend’s
leadership, they lament
his upcoming transfer
to a church in Queens in
2020.
“It’s very sad for everyone,”
said Louis Cerchione,
a local who has been a member
of St. Finbar since 1978.
“When something was done,
it had to be 110 percent. And
he gave it 120.”
God speed!
Bensonhurst pastor who saved
church from closure to leave
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