“Fields?” you might ask. Where are the fields? Let’s step back in time at the Church of St. Luke in the Fields. I will tell you its story.
This Episcopal church stands at 487 Hudson Street. It is nestled between Christopher and Barrow Streets in Manhattan’s West Village. The Church of St. Luke in the Fields was built in 1821 and 1822. It is a beacon of resilience.
The Church of St. Luke in the Fields is linked to St. Luke’s School. The elementary school shares the same block. Both are part of the Greenwich Village Historic District since 1969.
In 1820, Trinity Church donated farmland. This allowed for the expansion of New York City into Greenwich Village. Clement Clarke Moore planned the original complex. He later became the church’s first pastor. Adjoining stone row houses were rented out. Greenwich Village was a refuge from city diseases. The name St. Luke in the Fields reflected this pastoral setting.
By the late 1880s, the area became poor with many immigrants. The congregation moved uptown. St. Luke’s became a chapel of Trinity Church. Independence was regained in 1976 under Rector Ledlie Laughlin.
John Murray Forbes brought the Oxford Movement to the US. Edward Schlueter served from 1911 to the 1940s. He created community programs like summer camps. Schlueter also redesigned the sanctuary.
The Church of St. Luke in the Fields has faced adversity. Fires damaged it in 1886 and 1981. Hugh Hardy restored the building after the latter fire. The original Federal style was largely recovered. Reconstruction finished in 1985.
The garden won a Village Award in 2000. This was from the Greenwich Village Society for Historic Preservation.
For years, the church gave bread to the poor. This “Leake Dole of Bread” was thanks to John Leake’s will.
The AIDS epidemic deeply impacted the Village in the 1980s. The AIDS Project of St. Luke’s began in 1987. It offered dinners and teas to many affected people. Former actress Molly McGreevy was a priest ministering to AIDS patients. St. Luke’s actively supports the gay and lesbian community. It participates in the annual Gay Pride March. A Festive Choral Evensong follows the march each year.
Gay civil rights hero Dick Leitsch is buried here.
The choir performs concerts each year. They have premiered works like Telemann’s St. Matthew Passion. David Shuler is the organist and choirmaster.
Gwen Gould founded the West Village Chorale. Until 2010, most of its concerts were at the Church of St. Luke in the Fields.
The Orchestra of St. Luke’s takes its name from this church.
The current organ was installed in 1986. The 1981 fire destroyed the previous one. It is nearly identical to the destroyed organ. It has 27 stops and 1670 pipes.
The Church of St. Luke in the Fields stands as a testament to faith. It represents community. Its history shows a commitment to serving others. It has been a sanctuary in every sense of the word.