Saint John the Evangelist Catholic Church, Indianapolis

While at Gen Con, I went to Sunday Mass at Saint John the Evangelist Church which is just across the street from the convention center. It is on Georgia Street, which was the main venue for the food trucks where I had many a yummy meal.

St. John the Evangelist church, seen from Georgia Street

The parish is the oldest Roman Catholic parish in Indianapolis. It was founded in 1837. The first church was built a few blocks away and called the Chapel of the Holy Cross. In 1850, a new church was built at the current location and the name changed to Saint John the Evangelist. A larger church (the current structure) was completed in 1871.

Morning sunshine on the front of the church

I arrived early to Mass and was impressed that a large group was praying the rosary. The service was reverent and filled with lots of good music. The priest said he was a visiting priest. He and three other priest friends come every year to Gen Con and stay at the rectory. The pastor goes on retreat while they are visiting, so it's a win/win situation.

The nave gives a sense of the classical styling of the church. After Mass, I met a fellow who said they had a small fire a few years back. That sparked a renovation and cleaning. They took out the carpets and cleaned all the art, adding some extra items to make it more beautiful than before. Here are the results!

Nave

Main altar

Above the main altar

Side altar to Virgin Mary

Side altar to St. Joseph

Pieta altar

Baptismal font with holy oils behind

They did not use this pulpit