Sacred Heart Church have postponed their centenary celebrations once more but say there is still plenty to be celebrated in the meantime.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The event was originally scheduled for July 11th, exactly 100 years since the Sacred Heart Parish began and was moved to September 19th and then a new date on November 28th in the hopes that those wanting to join in on the celebrations will be able to visit from across NSW and interstate.
Parish Priest Reverand Andrew Grace said that even though the Riverina is out of lockdown, the church felt that by pushing the date back once more to November was the best option for the church community.
"Even though we are out of lockdown we felt that it wouldn't be a joyful event if we had to wear facemasks and exclude people wanting to travel to Griffith for the celebrations," Father Grace said.
"We are quite concerned by the current border restrictions which is why we chose to push the date right back to as many people can come as possible."
Father O'Dea founded the church as we know it today, and was seminal in the creation of Saint Patrick's Primary School.
READ MORE
Father Grace said his dedication to the church was 'unparalleled'.
"The sacrifices he made to the church and to get the school up and running are incredible," Father Grace said.
"He even moved from the parish building to the back of the school hall to allow for the nuns who taught at the school to have a place to live."
Pope Francis even sent his own own congratulatory message all the the way from the Vatican city to the Sacred Heart parish.
The centenary is also being commemorated with a special book which has been painstakingly put together for almost a decade, chronicling the churches activities over the last century.
According to Father Grace, the book sales had been going very well, and the church had almost run out of copies.
"We have sold more than two thirds of our original run of 300 books," Father Grace said.
"If there is enough demand we would love to do a reprint."
And in another 100 years, Father Grace said that he believed there would be an 'incredible revival' in Griffith.
"I really believe that there will be a beautiful revival of love, family life and faith in our community in the years to come," Father Grace said.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.irrigator.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News