Buffalo Mass Mob concept began in 2013 with the goal of getting more attention to some of Buffalo’s under-attended inner-city churches with the ever-growing phenomenon bringing hundreds of people to churches whose attendance had been declining over the years.
“The concept is simple,” says Buffalo Mass Mob co-founder Chris Byrd. “We want to showcase Buffalo’s historic churches, but we want the community to see them in their intended purpose. A lot of the city’s churches have fallen off people’s radar screens. This gives people who come to a mass mob an opportunity to share in the living and breathing history of a church and an understanding of how important they are to the cultural and historic fabric of Buffalo.”
Originated in Buffalo, the mass mob movement has garnered national and international attention. Buffalo Mass Mob has also inspired people in other cities to organize their own.
Saint Stanilaus Church, located at Peckham and Townsend Streets in Buffalo, was established as a parish in 1873 by Rev. Jan Pitass and the Society of Saint Stanislaus. The original church was a two-story, wood frame church that was built in 1874. That church was converted to a school shortly after the present-day church was completed in 1886. In 1904, the church’s parish was among the largest in the U.S. with close to 20,000 parishioners and nearly 2,000 children were enrolled in the school. The parish continues to serve Buffalo’s Polish community and Buffalo’s east side. It is often referred to as “The Mother Church of Polonia.”
Buffalo Mass Mob XIX will begin at 8:30 AM. The church will remain open after mass for people to take pictures and tour the church.
For more information on Buffalo Mass Mob, visit www.buffalomassmob.org. For more information on Saint Stanislaus Church, visit www.ststansbuffalo.com.
Image courtesy BuffaloMassMob.org.
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