The Roman Catholic parish of the Holy Ghost celebrates with a look into the community's past

A9

by Hanne Armstrong
This Week Staff

Stumble Upon

del.icio.us

Digg

Facebook

Print

Email

Speak Up

This year is the 100th birthday of the Roman Catholic Parish of the Holy Ghost. A special mass, a parish picnic and a tree-planting ceremony in the Riverside Catholic Cemetery have already been held in celebration.

Enlarge Photo

Photo Contributed

This old postcard shows the Holy Ghost church before the steeple blew down.

A further part of the centenary commemoration takes place in August, when members and friends of the parish are invited on a trip to its intriguing roots in the abandoned community of New Ireland.

"The roots of this parish are in the early Irish settlement of New Ireland," explains parishioner Winnie Smith. "In fact the bell and angel candelabra in Holy Ghost Church are from St. Agatha's Church in New Ireland. St. Agatha's was built in the 1870's, replacing the small church that had been there before."

Beulah Morrissey is another long-time member of Holy Ghost parish, and has an interesting story about the demise of St. Agatha's around the turn of the last century.

"Father Edward McAuley was the priest in 1906," she relates. "His niece was murdered and the murderer was hanged, but it was all too much for him, and he died the next year. People were moving out of small communities, and in 1908 St. Agatha's was closed and it was decided to build a church here in Riverside-Albert."

Murder and hanging, and roots that stretch back generations, this is what the parish Historical Visit to New Ireland in August will recall. The trip will wind up at St. Agatha's cemetery, where ancestors of many Holy Ghost parishioners rest.

"So," continues Beulah, "the parish was formed here in 1908, and the first mass was celebrated in January of 1909. The building was dedicated that June."

How much did it cost to put up a church with a 100-foot steeple that could seat 200 people a century ago? $4,500, and that paid the architect and the building contractor. During those early years about 100 people would attend mass on a regular basis, compared with about 40 now.

But Winnie points out that it isn't the same 40 people every week, so active attendance is somewhat higher than that.

"It's a little difficult to get young people to go to church on a Saturday, but we have to have it then because Father Mulligan looks after three other churches as well as ours," she explains. Phil Mulligan, though he has only been in the parish a little over a year, has entered fully and enthusiastically into anniversary celebrations.

Holy Ghost Church still looks much as it did a hundred years ago. The biggest change occurred when the steeple blew down in the 1950's, not to be replaced. The historic bell was rehung in the foreshortened tower. Even Vatican II, which ordered the removal of many pieces of religious art and statuary, has not won out over the past.

"Vatican II did away with many things from the church, but Beulah and her husband saved a lot of it, and it's back in the church now, though not where it was originally," explains Winnie.

Holy Ghost Church has had a vibrant first hundred years. It will be interesting to see how the parish fares in its second century.