St. Mary of Celle is named after the ancient shrine of Our Lady of Mariazell (literally, "house of Mary"), situated in beautiful mountain country 50 miles southwest of Vienna, Austria.  

Mariazell was established by the Benedictines of St. Lambrecht Abbey in 1157, and for centuries, it has been a place of pilgrimage for all who wish to pay homage to the Queen of Heaven.  Today, it is the most-visited Marian shrine in central Europe, receiving approximately one million visitors each year.  

                          

• 1909: A small number of Catholic families in South Oak Park (now North Berwyn) request the ministrations of a Catholic priest. Father Procopius Neuzil, O.S.B., organizes St. Mary of Celle and becomes the first pastor.

              -The New World, July 17, 1909

• 1910: Archbishop James Quigley, D.D., blesses a two story building built to serve as church and school. Brothers from St. Procopius abbey and parishoners do most of the construction work. The $11,000 building cost is born by the congregation with generous assistance from the abbey.

                     
                        

• SMC was the first Catholic church in the area of what was to become the City of Berwyn. Ascension Church and St. Edmund's Church in Oak Park were built at approximately the same time.

• 1910: Benedictine Sisters from the Convent of the Sacred Heart (Lisle, Ill.) arrive to take charge of the four classroom school.

                            
                       

• 1915-1923: Rev. Alphonse Biskup (1915-1917), Rev. Raphael Kubat (1917-1918), and Rev. Vitus Haman (1918-1923) serve as pastors of the growing parish.

• 1923: Rev. Bernard Haman is appointed pastor and supervises the construction of a school to meet the needs of the now large parish. In 1924, the cornerstone of the "U"-shaped school is laid. The space in the center will be for a permanent church. Architect B. Rezny designs a "Spanish style" for the stone trim.

• "For the past two years, Berwyn enjoyed an unsurpassed building boom, and many families from Chicago moved into this beautiful residential suburb. The present...building...could not accomodate all the children applying.... The parishoners responded very generously and enthusiastically to the Pastor's appeal and as a result, a beautiful $60,000 school has been erected."

               -The New World, Nov. 28, 1924

• 1925: Father Vitus Haman returns as pastor of SMC.

• 1926: A stone convent is erected south of the wood frame church at 1431

• 1927: The first resident assistant, Rev. Maurus Vauchout, O.S.B., is assigned to SMC. Also in 1927, St. Odilo Church is organized. (St. Leonard Church was established in 1923). The 1920s saw Berwyn's fastest growth in population and housing (population 47,027 by 1930).

• 1931: On the Feast of Our Lady, August 15, 1931, the present church building is complete. Built for $50,000 by the architectural firm of Meyer and Cook and the construction company of Gleixmer Construction, it is designed in Spanish-Romanesque style and sits within the U-shaped school.

                
                           

• 1938: Ground is broken for the present rectory, designed by the architectural firm of Meyer and Cook. The priests will move into the rectory in July, 1939.

               
                                        

• 1941: On October 16, tragedy strikes the parish when Pastor Vitus Haman is killed by a speeding automobile while trying to cross Roosevelt road.

• 1942: In February, Rev. Robert Mastny, O.S.B., is installed as the new pastor, a position he will hold for the next 37 years. A former football, basketball, and baseball coach at St. Procopius College in Lisle, he had been an associate at SMC since 1937.

• 1942-1945: Moroder Co. of Milwaukee installs the hand-carved oak main altar, side altars, communion rail, pulpit, and sedilia.

                                   
            

• 513 men of St. Mary of Celle would serve their country in the second world war--25 would lose their lives. 

• SMC school was the first suburban school to be honored by the American Legion by winning the "Minute Man Flag" in recognition for its war efforts. The school would win fourth place in state competition for the sale of Bonds and Stamps.

                                 

• Over the course of the war, the school children would raise $750,000 in war bonds to help the government buy a flying jeep, an amphibious jeep, and an Army bomber subsequently christened the "Maria Celle."

• 1948: Property north of the rectory is purchased from St. Procopius Abbey

• 1950: On February 10th, the cornerstone of the brick school building and social center is laid on 15th and Wesley. The $450,000 building, designed by the architectural firm of Meyer and Cook, will be dedicated on September 2,   1951.

                                 

• Also, under Father Mastny's leadership, the former "picnic grove" in the north land of the parish block is transformed into the baseball field and the parish's little league program begins.

                                
                                         

• 1955: The old wood-frame church and school building is torn down to make way for an addition to the convent.

• 1958: On November 23, the renovations and addition to the convent are dedicated.

• 1960: In May, the parish celebrates its Golden Jubilee.

• 1979: In May, Fr. Mastny celebrates the 50th anniversary of his ordination with a special mass and open house. In October, he is named pastor emeritus and retires to St. Procopius Abbey in Lisle.

• 1979: The Benedictine Fathers of Lisle requests the Chancery Office to assign future priests and pastors to SMC. On October 1, Rev. Cyril Nemecek is installed as the first diocesan pastor of SMC.

• 1979-1984: Old embellishments in the church are painted over to restore the church to its original interior.

• 1984: In January, Father Mastny dies, having served the people of St. Mary of Celle for forty-six years.

• 1984: The parish celebrates its seventy-fifth anniversary.

"...memories tend to focus on memorable and unique events of the past. Too often, they ignore the richness of the day-to-day events which constitute the majority of the time being commemorated. The seemingly humdrum and ordinary appear unworthy of recollection.  Yet it is precisely those years of quiet, dedicated, and truly worthy service...that represent what is truly special to our parish family. I am particularly moved by the example of Father Bob Mastny whose own self-effacing yet heroic ministry forforty-two years stands as a true testimonial to the simplicity of the Gospel message. And the efforts of so many of our parish family in the variety of service and ministry which enrich our lives is likewise a real witness to their committment to the simple command of Jesus, 'Love one another as I have loved you.'"

• 1992: Rev. Richard J. Prendergast is installed as SMC's tenth pastor.

• 1992-2001: SMC's Food Pantry expands to serve the Berwyn-Cicero-Stickney area, Public Action to Deliver Shelter (PADS) is established at SMC, and the Spanish Mass is instituted. Also, the nine parish Cooperativo of Berwyn and Cicero is established. These churches will work together to share resources and ideas and generally support one another in ministry.

• 2001: Fr. Prendergast oversees a major renovation of our church building with the Mass of Rededication held on November 4, 2001, Bishop Jakubowski presiding. This work is the largest renovation of the church building since its original construction. The scope of the renovation allows the parish to reclaim some of the original beauty of this magnificent place of prayer.

• 2004: Fr. Prendergast ends his tenure at SMC and becomes pastor of St. Josaphat parish on the North Side of Chicago. 

• August 2004: Fr. William Zimmer is assigned as administrator while the search for a parish pastor continues.

• Spring 2005: The parish mourns the Archdiocesan decision to close SMC's beloved parish school. 170 children will enter other area Catholic and public schools in the fall of 2005.

• July 2005: Rev. W. James Clavey is installed as SMC's eleventh pastor.

• September 2006: After the departure of the School Sisters of Notre Dame, the Sisters of Christian Charity--refugees from Hurricane Katrina--move into the parish convent and begin their ministry at St. Mary of Celle.

• Fall 2007: After a major renovation of the school building by Catholic Charities, the St. Mary of Celle Family Center opens. This center, a partnership between St. Mary of Celle parish and Catholic Charities, will provide early childhood education to one of the neediest areas in Illinois.

     
                         

• 2009:  St. Mary of Celle celebrates its 100th anniversary.

• July 2011: Rev. William Stenzel is installed as SMC's twelfth pastor.

• July 2014:  Fr. Stenzel retires and become Pastor Emeritus.  Rev. Hugo Morales is installed as SMC's thirteenth pastor.

• 2014-2018:  The parish continues to grow more diverse.  In 2016, in response to a growing Filipino community, a bilingual mass in Tagalog-English is established.

1) Rt. Rev. Abbot Procopius Neuzil, O.S.B.                                      
Third Abbot of St. Procopius Abbey
Organizer and 1st Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1909-1910


2) Rev. Anthony Nouza, O.S.B.
2nd Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1910-1915


3) Rev. Alphonse Biskup, O.S.B.
3rd Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1915-1917


4) Rev. Raphael Kubat, O.S.B.
4th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1917-1918


5) & 7) Rev. Vitus Haman, O.S.B
5th and 7th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1918-1923 and 1925-1941


6) Rev. Bernard Haman, O.S.B.
6th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1923-1925


8) Rev. Robert F. Mastny, O.S.B.
8th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1942-1979


9) Rev. M. Cyril Nemecek
9th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1980-1992


10) Rev. Richard J. Prendergast
10th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 1992-2004


11) Rev. W. James Clavey
11th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 2005-2011


12) Rev. William Stenzel
12th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 2011-2014


13) Rev. Hugo Morales
13th Pastor of St. Mary of Celle, 2014-Present