Chicagoland

New film shares rich history of Wilmette parish: German Catholics founded St. Joseph’s 168 years ago

By Daniel P. Smith | Contributor
Sunday, February 17, 2013

With an eye on preserving its culture and inviting people into its community of faith, a film about the 168-year-old St. Joseph Parish in north suburban Wilmette will soon make its appearance at Chicago area theaters.

Narrated by Bishop Francis Kane, the documentary — “Cathedral of the North Shore” — chronicles the rich history of St. Joseph through interviews with religious and parish leaders, parishioners and scholars as well as historical photographs and modern-day footage.

A project spearheaded by the Evangelization Committee at St. Joseph and funded by private donors, the 45-minute film will debut March 2 at the AMC Village Crossing theater in Skokie. It will be screened at 7 p.m. and again at 8:30 p.m. on the theater’s largest screen.

A spirited history

Filmmaker Michael Jolls, a one-time staff member at the Wilmette parish, began making the documentary in early 2012 at the prompting of the evangelization committee.

One of the oldest parishes in Cook County, St. Joseph was founded in 1845 to serve the growing German-Catholic population that had settled along the North Shore. For a time, St. Joseph was the only Catholic Church between St. Mary located at Madison Street and Wabash Avenue and Immaculate Conception in present-day Waukegan.

An early scene in the film, in fact, features a historical reenactment of German settlers coming to the area in the mid-19th century. To better capture the times, the actors speak in German while English-language subtitles relay their words.

The documentary shines a particularly bright light on Rev. William Netstraeter, the parish’s dynamic, trend-setting pastor for more than 50 years. After years of pastoral instability, including six pastors over a 13- year period, the German-speaking Netstraeter ventured to the then-rural parish in 1872 to deliver stability and purpose.

Over the next five decades, Netstraeter did that and more. The influential pastor expanded St. Joseph’s parishioner base and elevated its profile, while also helping to establish Wilmette’s village government and found New Trier High School.

“I hope the movie shines a light on Father Netstraeter and gives his legacy a boost,” said Jolls, who served as the documentary’s writer, director and producer.

New evangelization

Evangelization committee chairman John Henik said St. Joseph has embraced modern technology, including email, video and social media, as an evangelization tool and the documentary is a dramatic extension of those new evangelization efforts.

“The film is a visual way for people to really see who we are and what we do,” Henik said. “Hopefully, they see a church they want to belong to and a place they can visit to find comfort and friendship.”

Knowing the outreach objective, Jolls understood he needed to share appealing visuals through a creative cinematic approach. In filming the church building, for instance, he utilized angles high and low and generated footage during the day and night hours to show the church building from distinct perspectives.

“We saw an opportunity that if we made the film contemporary and compelling, that it would be more engaging and beautiful,” Jolls said.

Jolls’ wish is that the film heightens St. Joseph’s profile and makes it a destination, much as other churches in the archdiocese are for locals and visitors alike.

St. Joseph pastor Rev. Robert Tonelli, meanwhile, hopes the documentary helps members new to the 1,200-family parish to understand St. Joseph’s culture and appreciate the community they are joining. For those who have been involved in the project, Tonelli has already witnessed that appreciation take hold.

“There’s a growing pride throughout the parish in its history and evolution and that’s given even greater strength to our parish life,” Tonelli said. “The more I’m here and the more I learn, the more I’m amazed at this history and appreciate it.”

Following the film’s winter release, a DVD featuring additional content will be available this summer.

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