Saint Margaret of Scotland, Greentree

Parish History

St. Margaret of Scotland Parish was established on January 3, 1931, as a mission of St. Martin, West End.  The founding of the parish was sparked by a petition by a group of Greentree Catholics to the bishop on December 9, 1930, requesting permission to form the mission.  On February 27, 1931, the parish purchased a former grocery store and converted it to a church.  The first Mass in the new church was celebrated on May 3, 1931.  The congregation continued to grow and on July 27, 1938, St. Margaret of Scotland became an independent parish.

The original church served the parish until 1952.  In 1949, the state announced its plan to build the Penn-Lincoln Parkway.  The route of the highway included the property of St. Margaret, including the church.  The parish made plans to build a new school that would include a temporary church.  Ground for the new church/school building was broken in April of 1951 and the building was dedicated on November 9, 1952.  The upper floor of the building served as the school and the lower floor as a church. 

The temporary church served the parish for over 25 years.  On March 4, 1979, ground was broken for a new church.  The cornerstone was laid on December 9, 1979, and the first Mass was celebrated in the new church on June 8, 1980.  The church was officially dedicated on August 10, 1980.  The temporary church in the school building was converted to a gymnasium.

With the turn of the century, trends in the Diocese of Pittsburgh began to reveal a decline in Mass attendance and sacramental participation.  At the same time, the number of priests available for parish ministry also began to decline.

To address these challenges, Bishop David Zubik announced on April 12, 2015 a new diocesan initiative, On Mission for The Church Alive!, a consultative strategic planning process designed to foster viable, sustainable and vibrant parishes.  As part of this process, the Bishop, in consultation with the faithful, began to consider new models of parish life based on pastoral needs, financial and temporal resources and available clergy.

In 2018, following the period of consultation, parishes were grouped together and served by a single clergy team to eventually form one new parish.

During this transition period, St. Margaret of Scotland Parish remained an independent parish while sharing clergy and staff and eventually publishing a joint bulletin with the other parishes.   This ended on January 4, 2021 when St. Margaret of Scotland Parish merged with Ss. Simon and Jude Parish, Scott Township and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish, Carnegie to form the new St. Raphael the Archangel Parish.  As part of the merger St. Margaret of Scotland Church remained open as part of the new parish.