Stray bullet breaches brand-new Detroit high school chapel; no injuries reported

 

CNA Staff, Apr 7, 2025 / 16:47 pm (CNA).

A shooting in northwest Detroit on Monday morning resulted in a stray bullet breaching the newly dedicated Catholic chapel at Loyola High School, reportedly while about 40 students were inside.

Police said the bullet entered St. Peter Claver Chapel at around 7:50 a.m. on April 7. There were no reported injuries, and police are canvassing the neighborhood seeking information on what led to the shooting and who was involved.

CNA reached out to the Detroit Police Department for further information, inquiring as to whether there are any suspects in the shooting, but did not receive a response by publication time.

The Catholic boys high school in Detroit, which is under the care of the Jesuits Midwest Province, dedicated the new chapel last week. The archdiocese says it is the first Catholic worship space constructed in the city of Detroit since the mid-1960s.

Deborale Richardson-Phillips, Loyola High School’s principal, said in a statement to local news on Monday that the bullet penetrated the chapel wall shortly before the school’s regularly scheduled morning prayer. She said the school is “deeply grateful to report that no one was injured.”

“As a precaution, all students are currently being held safely in the gym. For everyone’s safety, while the investigation is ongoing, students will be permitted to leave with a parent or guardian, students who drove will only be released with parental consent, and no student will be allowed to walk home,” the principal continued.

“We will continue to monitor the situation closely and will keep you informed with any updates as they become available. Please join us in prayer for the continued safety of our entire school community.”

According to the Detroit Catholic, the newspaper of the archdiocese, the 225-seat chapel was dedicated April 2 after a $9 million fundraising campaign, which launched in 2023.

Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger — himself newly appointed in February and installed as archbishop last month — presided over the dedication alongside leaders of Loyola High School, the Detroit Jesuit community, and donors to the campaign.

The chapel features sacred items donated from across the Archdiocese of Detroit, including chairs from St. James Parish in Novi, Stations of the Cross from the former St. Philomena Parish in Detroit, a statue of Our Lady from the former St. Ladislaus Parish in Hamtramck, and a tabernacle from St. Daniel Parish in Clarkston.

During the dedication, Jesuit Father Thomas McClain, superior of the Detroit Jesuit community, presented Richardson-Phillips with a relic of St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, as a reminder to the school “to look to Christ as the model to follow.”

Loyola’s campus used to be home to the former St. Peter Claver Church, but the church roof collapsed in January 2018, forcing the school to celebrate Mass and prayer time in the school’s gym, which is located inside the edifice of the former St. Francis de Sales Parish.

“The transition from praying in a gym, where we play and we laugh and eat popcorn, to this beautiful new space on our campus where there’s a different [sense] of reverence is really exciting for our students,” Richardson-Phillips, the school’s principal, told the Detroit Catholic.

“It’s really exciting for our students, and it’s exciting for me to see them connecting at what I consider to be the heart of our mission, which is faith formation.”

The school’s campaign saw the construction of the new chapel complex and a student courtyard as well as the construction of a welcome center, a $1.5 million student tuition assistance fund, and a $1 million faculty development fund.

“On behalf of the archdiocese, I want to say to our benefactors and donors, these things would not have happened without you,” Weisenburger said at the April 2 dedication.

“God sees these things, and for those of us who are called to leadership, this and the way that you have made this possible matters. Our God sees it.”

Daniel Meloy of the Detroit Catholic contributed to this story.