March 20, 1992

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ATHOLIC

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Inews •ving Catholics in

Western North Carolina

Volume

in the Diocese of Charlotte

Mount

Number 28 • March

1

20,

1992

Holly Church, Nearing 150,

Withstands Test Of Time KEANE

By JOANN

Associate Editor

MOUNT HOLLY— in

If

Catholicism

North Carolina were a mighty oak,

its

towering strength would reach some 100 feet in stately

watch with a diameter of

approximately four

weather. Although

mission

of

tiny roots just beginning to It

took shape in the form

Joseph in Mount Holly, the oldest

St.

Catholic Church in the

Along the banks of the Catawba River Gaston County, the discovery of gold lured miners seeking fortune. Irish and immigrants led the way, bringing

with them the

its

t

150th birthday next year.

now maintained mostly as a historic Joseph and

St.

St.

Paul in

and rarely used,

New Bern, both dedicated in

wo oldest standing Catholic churches in North Carolina.

1

site

JOANN

Photo by

will

1843, are

KEANE

bcese To Offer Weekly Televised lass Beginning On Easter Sunday

celebrations

were

liday, television

l^ablevision telecast

:

who

viewers

circuit riding pastor. Travelling

subscribe

of Charlotte will witness the

of a Mass originating from

St.

ton assigned Father T.

Bishop John F. Donoghue will serve as as the pre-taped Masses are aired in

hernial order following the liturgical (jidar.

result

h

jilevision

of the addition of Vision

I'levision

Inter-

Network (VISN)

to

of Charlotte's lineup of chan-

Nov.

IcMTiinational

r

Mass across the airwaves

Satellite

On

VISN, a multinetwork was assigned to 1,

1991,

channel 39, providing a 24-

a day ecumenical channel of faith and

TV

lies

using a variety of

Ina,

music, documentaries, sitcom,

formats

talk,

magazine and feature film. VISN offers local communities 14

thing, I

ars

of "standard windows" per

|re that local

[insert their !

religious affilliates

week

of VISN

own programming.

Broadcast of a weekly

greatly benefits those

homes, serving as yet another Ke of evangelism sweeping the diocese. |e ten-year goal

of the Diocese is evange-

ftion, or bringing the

Good News

pe," says Msgr. John tacellor

J.

and vicar general

tion of

it

life,

does not

fulfill

the obliga-

worship for those able to attend

Mass.

Mount

Cronin to serve the

J.

have two

different

effects

of yellow fever before the work was

completed. Father Cronin

buried under

to the

A badly deteriorated roof offered

McSweeney,

in curia for the

little

pro-

from the elements, and only two

shutters remained.

Nature reclaimed the

once-pristine cemetery,

and the stone wall

For some time, Msgr. McSweeney points out, "the church was used as a hay bam. Yet, at the same time, the original furnishings were unharmed. It was simply closed up and never used." In 1976, St Joseph's was restored by crumbled.

'

Bishop Michael Begley, with Charlotte and Belmont parishioners, many of whom had ancestors buried in the cemetery. exterior, altar and pews are just as they

Mass back in 1943.

The were

Francis B.

Galligan, formerly ofGastonia, spearheaded the modest structure was

the restoration of the church, which in 1979

Scranton, and one originating

Ignatius Reynolds, secondbishopofCharles-

was designated as a National Historical site by the State of North Carolina and the U.S.

Bonnot.

The Scranton Mass is broadcast twice on Sunday: once at 6 am. and again at 1 1 :30 a.m. The Charlotte Mass will preempt the latter. While the Mass initially will be available only in the Charlotte market, Gail Hunt Telecommunications, plans to offer

Built in

1 843,

In that same year, St Paul's in New Bern was dedicated. The two churches stand as the two oldest Catholic Churches

Department of the Interior. Although churches are not ordinarily

surviving in the

register, St.

ton.

St.

considered eligible for listing in the national

state.

Joseph Church

is

primitive stone wall alongside a now-bustling state road.

The

Joseph's

affiliates in

it

Any network dimension

is

strongest

when a

blended with

local,

See Historic, Page 3

board building stands shuttered against the

to

na-

DIOCESAN SUPPORT APPEAL

says

Father Bonnot.

February See

TV Mass, Page 3

an exception as one

state.

simple, white-clap-

other areas of Western

is

is

of the two oldest Catholic churches in the

nestled behind a

North Carolina. tional

St.

Joseph never fell prey to serious vandalism.

consecrated anddedicated in 1844by Bishop

relations for

from the cathedral in San Antonio, Texas." The Texas Mass is bilingual, says Father

VISN

U era.

Although neglected over the years,

for the first

St Joseph's cem-

middle 1960s," said

VISN.

community

"One from

trees in

is

etery.

MassesonSunday,"saidFather Bob Bonnot director of

Mary

until the

stance altar of the pre- Vatican

tection

Holly.

and Joseph Church still standing as a reminder of time gone by. It was Father Cronin who began building the church, but he died from the after-

one of the holly

"We (VISN) do

church has a sence of awe

Violette, director of the diocesan Office of

Mass brings the

ifpture into

i«se.

While the Mass

benefit of those

incapacitated,

Bringing the lie

who

and also for the may be homebound."

enrich one's spiritual

little

and mystery in the presence of God," said Msgr. McSweeney. "The church is preserved in the format which Catholics at-

desired a

led to the raising of the parish, Saints

will

A bathroom trip

Msgr. McSweeney, referring to the Latin-

church andBishop JohnEnglandofCharles-

"The broadcast Mass

McSweeney.

lacking.

tended Mass

acres for the founding of the first church that

its

still

decade.

ture and eucharistic celebration," saysMsgr.

Mass with

A rustic cabinet contains rosa-

mines were closed by court injunction and the development of a parish was deferred for a

for a church, but in 1832, the gold

industry, the remaining Irish

life is

contains a slender

still

involves a call to nature.

"The

Finola

richness,

the liturgy of the

of Catholic

as the Irish

and the face of Jesus smiles down from the wall above. While electricity has been added over the years, some modem conveliterally

De

wide

by the circuit riding priest so many

niences are

several gold mines.

same ones used

The back room

who came to the area in

furnished a chapel, and planned hopefully

a mystical presence inside Si

ago.

of Chevalier Riva De Finola, a Frenchman

symbols and emphasis on the sacred Scrip-

integral aspect

are the

ries,

were the key to the formation of parish worship in the Gaston County area. It was the Lonergan family's donation of a few

"An

is

Though primitive in sructure, the

immigrants knelt in prayer nearly 1 50 years

years ago.

became

1

planks the floor, and the creaking

The smattering of Catholics in what would become Gaston County worshipped

1830, and

that is thf

inside has a sense of richness. Simple,

terrain.

home

McSweeney. "And

growth of the Church."

cot used

lies

lick Cathedral in Charlotte.

liilist

of-

History shows that a handful of famiEaster

in the

by horseback, one priest took on the hardship of the countless miles and rugged

By JOANN KEANE

— Beginning

of a

of how history has played a ro

true sense

pews

Catholics at

CHARLOTTE

"We sometimes fail

important to connect to our roots,"

There

Following the collapse of the mining

Associate Editor

"It is

said Msgr.

both North and South Carolina

owner of Holly,

in curia for the diocese.

wood

by a

J.

chancellor and vicar general

to recognize the historic significance

cese of Charleston, which encompassed

in the chapel contained in the palatial

Mount

McSweeney,

Joseph's.

fered

Joseph Church in

seemingly obsolete," said Msgr. John

Back in the early 19th century, North Carolina was a mission served by the Dio-

Mass

care of the

of the aged mission.

thirst for faith fulfillment

Infrequent

minimum

over the years for the

church."

state.

in

Italian

the

"So many times a building becomes

was a

In the early 1800s, Catholicism

pierce the red clay.

httle,

church, maintaining the historic importance

feet.

As the roots of the oak continue to grow

its

used very

which has been providing funds

Charlotte,

ever deeper, so does our faith history.

sapling;

it is

maintained by the Diocese of

is

1 -

April 5, 1992


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