The Old Jesuit Church

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St. Charles College was established in 1837 in St. Charles parish, which is the third oldest parish in the Diocese of Lafayette. The site of the church was first purchased in 1819 by Bishop Louis William Dobourg for $10,000. In 1838 the church was officially built, and in the beginning the church was built and staffed by numerous Jesuit brothers who felt the need for a Jesuit following within the area. The first purpose of this building was not a church, but instead a school for young boys and men that wanted to learn about the catholic religion. At its peak the school enrolled 128 students in one year. As the church entered the 20th century, still a school at this time, it burned down in a fire and had to be rebuilt to what we see today. At this same time the school was transitioning from a school, to a college that only focused on training men into Jesuit priest and brothers. At the peak of this college, the school enrolled about 120 people (50 Jesuit priest and 40 juniors in training). This continued until 1972, when the college finally transformed into a church where people come and complete spiritual exercises in attempt to strengthen their faith. Due to this transition the college officially renamed the building from St. Charles College to what it is today, The Jesuit Spirituality Center.