An even better reason to visit this church is that Mass is offered here! And, well, the church sits right in the middle of a bustling neighborhood complete with thriving commercial strip. A church location like this has become a rarity in Detroit. Churches still anchor many neighborhoods in Detroit but the surrounding commercial structures are usually empty and long since closed. Here at Holy Redeemer you can exit the church and stroll down the block for coffee or ice cream, a particularly pleasant activity after Sunday Mass.
At one time the parish church was woven into the very fabric of the neighborhood and surrounding community and here at Holy Redeemer one gets that sense again. Church was a communal activity with the family walking to Mass together, greeting neighbors and friends on the front steps and afterwards walking through the neighborhood to get an ice cream or coffee and stopping again and again to chat with neighbors and parishioners. That scene has changed so much over the years. We so often drive to church, park in a sea of cars and scramble into Mass. Though sometimes we stay for doughnuts afterwards, more often we race to the exit to beat the parking lot madness.
The weekday afternoon that I attended Mass at Holy Redeemer was bright, cool and clear. After Mass I took a stroll along the commercial strip and even stopped for lunch before heading back to work.
