Mary, Mother of God Parish

Mary, Mother of God Parish’s History

Mary, Mother of God Parish is a Roman Catholic Parish located in North Scranton, Pennsylvania. We strive to serve God and each other in a manner that invites, welcome’s, and bonds all members. At Mary, Mother of God, we dedicate ourselves to ministering to and evangelizing both our own members and the greater, global community in the servant image of Jesus. Our mission as a parish is to live the Gospel of compassion and love in service to those in need.

The churches in North Scranton have witnessed many changes in the region in their long history. No longer do the coal mines, the railroads, or the silk mills provide jobs as they once did. Changing demographics, a struggling economy, and a decline in the number of priests presented great challenges to the North Scranton churches as they entered the 21st century. Beginning in 1986, St. Stanislaus and St. Stephen parishes shared a pastor with Holy Rosary. For twenty years, these three communities blended activities and programs of service. In 2005, it became necessary to close both St. Stanislaus and St. Stephen Churches. Parishioners were welcomed into the Holy Rosary Parish family. In 2001, St. Vincent de Paul Parish began its association with St. Joseph Parish under the care of a shared pastor; in 2005, St. Anthony of Padua Parish joined this community. Here also, the three parishes began to worship and work together forming a unified Catholic presence in lower North Scranton. A familiar pattern continued with the closing of St. Vincent de Paul Church in 2007, St. Anthony of Padua Church in 2010, and St. Joseph Church in 2011.

The spirit of our immigrant ancestors shines in us today as we strive to build a new unified community of faith under the patronage of Mary, Mother of God. It is in this spirit, on June 12, 2011, that we inaugurate a new parish whose mission today is the same as it has always been: proclaiming the gospel of Jesus, building a Christian community in service to God’s people, and being a model of Christ’s love to all our neighbors.