St. Luke’s Sacred Heart Campus, formerly Sacred Heart Hospital, on Chew Street in Allentown has been in the business of restoring the health of those in Allentown for over 100 years.
On June 13 that mission expanded in a symbolic way with the rededication of a historic statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. A crowd of faithful medical professionals, members of the diocesan community, and Allentown residents gathered to witness the statue’s rededication.
After the statue was vandalized in early 2023, it was removed from the public eye to prevent further damage. Now fully restored, the statue has been returned to its prominent position outside the hospital in downtown Allentown.
Originally dedicated when the hospital was founded in 1915, it resided on the east side of the hospital for 108 years facing Allentown Central Catholic High School. The statue came to represent the hospital’s resilience and eventually became part of Allentown’s broader history.
After the damage occurred, the hospital stepped in and commissioned Pennsylvania native and artist Fernando DeJesus to restore the statue's right arm after the vandalism incident.
“The restoration of this statue symbolizes St. Luke’s commitment to the identity of our hospital and maintaining our Catholic identity and our commitment to our community,” said Bill Moyer, President of St. Luke’s University Health Network’s West Region and the Sacred Heart Campus. Currently, St. Luke’s Sacred Heart Campus is the only Catholic hospital in the Lehigh Valley.
“The statue also speaks to our relationship with the Allentown Diocese and supporting a healing mission of providing care to a community that, if not for St. Luke’s, would not have access to great services,” said Moyer. “It’s also a reminder to our staff and community of our mission.”
The statue, as Moyer stated, represents the caring and love that employees and volunteers provide to the patients in their care.
Richard Anderson, President and CEO of St. Luke’s University Health Network, thanked all those who helped the statue be restored.
“St. Luke’s stepped up in 2017 and we worked with the Diocese … and through a lot of hard work, we were the only organization that stayed and supported the hospital, and what was important to everybody was that we preserved a Catholic tradition,” said Anderson.
Bishop Alfred Schlert also spoke to Anderson’s sentiments: “If you talk to a lot of other Catholic Bishops throughout the country, they'll say one of their biggest challenges is when a Catholic hospital tried to merge with a secular hospital; one that’s not Catholic or not religious per se. I have to say, working together as the Diocese with St. Luke’s was a seamless, beautiful, and respectful process.”
Bishop Schlert blessed the statue and rededicated it, then celebrated a dedication Mass in in St. Luke’s auditorium for those in attendance.
In his homily, the Bishop reminded those in attendance that June is the month of the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the importance of the compassion of Jesus’s Sacred Heart.
“There is no way to really comprehend the Sacred Heart of Jesus without thinking about love, mercy, compassion, and healing. All of the things that we strive to do in a hospital with a Catholic identity – love, mercy, compassion, and healing – all take place in this building every day,” he said.
“I could not be more grateful to the staff who allow the work to continue here, not just in a medical way, but in a truly Catholic environment.”
The Bishop also asked the Sacred Heart of Jesus to watch over the facility and all those in the care of the staff and volunteers at the hospital.
Photos by Norm Steinruck.
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