 At this time, the priests who were part of St. Peter were doing the best they could to keep the faith alive in their congregation. The priests were smart men who had attended school in Italy prior to their immigration, but most were unable to speak fluent English. At a time when immigrants were desperately trying to fit into the American life and be as American as possible, going to a church where the congregation was Italian was not the most desirable choice. Therefore, many Catholic Italians began going to churches and many others changed their religion altogether. Many of these Italians were becoming Protestant. The priests were poorly paid and most lived on about twenty-five cents per day. They had no permanent housing: many slept in the church itself, and preferred the altar floor because it was the only place in the church that had carpeting. It was also common for the priests to say Mass several churches on the same day. These circuits trips were sometimes as much as twenty-five miles away.
