What Would Jesus Do? Jesus Would Issue A Press Release And Make Sure Not To Wear A Striped Shirt

The demolition of St. Brigid’s Church on Avenue B in the East Village began yesterday, surprising everyone:

In panicked phone calls and anguished e-mail messages, word spread quickly yesterday morning in the East Village: “They are demolishing St. Brigid’s.”

By 8 a.m., concerned residents, former parishioners and preservationists, many of whom had been working to save the historic church for about five years, began gathering at Avenue B and Eighth Street in Manhattan. They took in the gaping eight-foot-tall hole in the back of the church, a shattered stained-glass window in front, and the scaffolding surrounding the base like a hangman’s noose.

“It floored me,” said Edwin Torres, a former parishioner and member of the Committee to Save St. Brigid’s.

The sound of electric saws and hammers from inside confirmed that what they had been fighting to prevent for so many years had begun, with no warning to them.

The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of New York issued a statement to reporters: “Work began today to take down the former Saint Brigid’s Church, which had become unsafe as a result of the rear wall of the building pulling away from the rest of the structure.”

It is, many would argue, an ignominious end for a church more than 150 years old, one of the oldest houses of worship in Manhattan, built to care for Roman Catholic immigrants fleeing the Irish potato famine.

Work continued despite the best efforts of elected officials who, powerless to stop it, nevertheless delivered grand speeches:

A host of politicians and community leaders, including Councilwoman Rosie Mendez, who was a parishioner of St. Brigid’s; Scott Stringer, the Manhattan borough president; State Senator Martin Connor; and Assemblywoman Sylvia Friedman, delivered impassioned statements yesterday afternoon in front of television cameras in the shade next to the church.

They accused archdiocesan officials of giving in to their greed and the overheated real estate market. They denounced the demolition as the erasing of heritage and history. They asked what Jesus would do.

Joseph Zwilling, a spokesman for the archdiocese, said the decision to demolish the church had nothing to do with money, pointing out that Roman Catholic officials were not planning to sell the property, but instead wanted to convert it to some other use that fits their mission, although that has not yet been decided.

So, as the politicians dispersed yesterday afternoon, the buzz saws continued to buzz.