Cor ad cor loquitur
Heart speaks to heart. Come find a home.
Oratory of St. Philip Neri
What Is an Oratory?
An Oratory is a community of Catholic priests and brothers who live together in common life without vows, following the Constitutions established by St. Philip Neri in Rome in the 1500s. Each Oratory is autonomous – rooted in a specific city, serving that city’s people.
Philip Neri was known for joy, humor, and the radical availability of his priestly heart. He gathered people around prayer, music, and conversation – not rules and programs. The Pittsburgh Oratory, founded in 1961, inherits that spirit.
The Pittsburgh Oratory is also home to the Catholic Newman Center for the University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, and Chatham University – the Oratorian tradition of personal encounter finding its natural home on university campuses.
The Pittsburgh Oratory
Founded
1961, Pittsburgh, PA
Patrons
St. Philip Neri · St. John Henry Newman
Worldwide Movement
Founded by St. Philip Neri, Rome, 1564. Now present in over 90 cities worldwide.
Mission
“Cultivates lifelong relationships with Christ in local university students and lay faithful of Pittsburgh through participation in the sacraments, devotion to the Word of God, and formation of intentional Catholic community.”
The Community
The Oratorians
A community of priests and brothers lives together at 4450 Bayard Street. Each came to Pittsburgh first as a student or resident – and stayed.
Father Michael Darcy, C.O.
Provost· Ord. 2002
Born in Middletown, NY, Fr. Mike arrived at the Oratory in 1997 and was ordained in 2002. He holds a Doctorate of Theology from Duquesne University and teaches senior Religion at St. Cyril Academy.
Father Joshua Kibler, C.O.
Vice-Provost· Ord. 2009
Fr. Josh came to the Oratory from East Stroudsburg in 2005 and was ordained in 2009. He serves as Vice-Provost and teaches Latin at South Hills Catholic Academy.
Father Peter Gruber, C.O.
Campus Chaplain and Director of Campus Ministry· Ord. 2017
Fr. Peter studied engineering and philosophy at Pitt and was ordained a priest in 2017. He oversees campus ministry for all three universities, with a particular focus at Pitt, and he serves as the Minister of the Rednal retreat house.
Father Stephen Lowery, C.O.
Priest· Ord. 2009
Fr. Stephen studied film at NYU, where he converted to Catholicism. He came to the Oratory from Alabama in 2006 and was ordained in 2009.
Father Reed Frey, C.O.
Treasurer· Ord. 2021
A native of Lancaster County, Fr. Reed arrived during his philosophy studies at Pitt and was ordained in 2021. He is now pursuing theology studies at Notre Dame.
Father Thomas Skamai, C.O.
Novice Master and Part-time Campus Chaplain· Ord. 2022
Fr. Thomas came from Rural Valley to study philosophy at Pitt and was ordained in 2022. He serves as Novice Master of the community, as part-time chaplain to Chatham, and as a teacher at Aquinas Academy, while pursuing a degree in canon law.
Father Leo Dornan, C.O.
Part-time Campus Chaplain· Ord. 2024
Fr. Leo came to the Oratory from Holly Springs, North Carolina. He studied philosophy and political science at Pitt, was ordained in May 2024, and now serves as part-time chaplain to Carnegie Mellon while teaching at Oakland Catholic High School.
Brothers & Seminarians
Br. Kurt Kessler, C.O.
Assistant to the Chaplains
From Lancaster, PA, Br. Kurt graduated from Pitt with a degree in philosophy and was ordained a deacon in 2026. He will be ordained a priest in May 2027 after completing his seminary training at Mount St. Mary’s Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Br. Matthew Grzybowski, C.O.
Brother in Formation
From the Cleveland suburbs, Br. Matthew graduated from Carnegie Mellon with a degree in civil engineering and teaches gym at South Hills Catholic Academy.
Br. John Crawshaw
Brother in Formation
Br. John grew up in the suburbs of Los Angeles and came to the Oratory after graduating from CMU with a degree in Information Systems, where he also competed on the track and field team. He became a novice shortly after moving in and is the most recent to join the community.
The Little Oratory
A Community Beyond the Clergy
The Little Oratory is the lay community of the Pittsburgh Oratory – men and women, students and families, who gather in friendship around the Oratory’s liturgical and community life.
Rooted in the spirituality of St. Philip Neri, the Little Oratory is not a sodality or a program. It is a gathering of friends who pray together, eat together, and support one another in ordinary life.
Little Oratory events include Sunday Donuts after the 11:00 am Mass, Fr. Mike’s Friday Bible Study, community dinners, and the annual Rednal Benefit dinner.
Bible Study with Fr. Mike
Fridays · 4:00 pm · The Oratory + Zoom
Sunday Donuts & Coffee
First Sunday of each month after 11:00 am Mass
Children's Holy Half Hour
Second Friday of each month · 10:30–11:00 am
Oratory Lecture Series
Last Thursday of each month · 6:30–8:30 pm
Rednal Benefit Dinner
Annual · Supports the Rednal Retreat House
History
Six Decades in Oakland
The Pittsburgh Oratory was established in 1961, when the Bishop of Pittsburgh founded a university parish – first located up the hill on Bigelow Boulevard – to serve students at Pitt, Carnegie Mellon, and Chatham. In 1967 it was canonically established as a pontifical house of the Confederation of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri, and in 1994 the community moved into its current home at 4450 Bayard Street in Oakland.
Today the Pittsburgh Oratory is one of roughly eighty Oratories worldwide – some five hundred Oratorians in all – and it serves the nearly ten thousand Catholics of the local university community. Across six decades it has remained a stable point in a changing neighborhood, and one of the few daily Mass communities in Pittsburgh.
In 2024, the Paul Fritts Opus 52 pipe organ was installed in the Oratory Chapel – a gift that underscored the community’s commitment to the full tradition of Catholic worship. The chapel, renovated through the Magnify the Lord capital campaign, now hosts daily Mass, perpetual Adoration, and sacred music.
The Oratory Staff
Staff
DeePro Services
Wilmar Hernández
customerservice@
The Oratory facilities are cleaned by DeePro Services.
Come and See
The Oratory is not a program. It is a place where people encounter God and one another – in the chapel, at the table, and in ordinary conversation. Come to Mass. Stay a while – for conversation, and coffee on the days it’s brewing. See what happens.
4450 Bayard Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15213 · (412) 681-3181