Saint Turibius Chapel

Saint Rose of Lima Chapel | Saint Pius X Chapel | Saint Joseph Oratory
The Four Chapels of the Josephinum

St. Turibius (1538-1606), the patron saint of the main chapel at the Josephinum, was the Bishop of Lima, Peru, in the 1500s. He started the first seminary in the Americas and was named the first male saint of the New World. Msgr. Jessing, founder of the Josephinum, named the main chapel St. Turibius at the old Josephinum and the tradition continues at the North High Street location.

The windows in the chapel are known for the original art displayed in their stained glass. Created in the 1930s by the studio of Emil Frei, Inc., St. Louis, MO, the Germanic art-deco style glass design, fitted into its Gothic Revival architectural framework, is beautiful and instructive. Each window contains symbols for meditation.

There are 12 windows. Ten of these honor saints whose lives exemplify study as well as other important contributions to the Church. In the two remaining, one is dedicated to the Holy Eucharist and the other to the Blessed Virgin, Queen of Clergy.

Following a renovation in the late 1980s, the relics of Saints Damien, Cosmos and Turibius were placed in a repository under the altar. These relics were undisturbed when a new altar was dedicated on September 6, 2009, by the Most Reverend Frederick Campbell, Bishop of Columbus. The altar was a gift from The Jubilee 2000 Museum located in downtown Columbus.

Our Lady of Perpetual Help

At the rear of St. Turibius chapel hangs the icon of Our Lady of Perpetual Help that belonged to the seminary’s founder, Msgr. Jessing; he understood the importance of Marian devotion and its role in formation for the priesthood.

In the Ohio Waisenfreund (December 1896), he wrote: “In order to promote the veneration of Mary among the students…they pray the rosary daily. Moreover, this week we had an altogether special celebration in honor of the Mother of God. For some time we have been in possession of an image of Our Lady of Perpetual Help…, which was painted in Rome … .This miraculous image … is found on the side altar … . Through this portrait, our chapel has become a chapel of grace… for our dear students and for all other persons who visit and call upon the powerful Virgin for the sake of her intercession with God.”

The painting hung in the original St. Turibius Chapel at the old Josephinum and continues to have a place of honor in St. Turibius Chapel at the North High Street campus.