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Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary
(ss.cc.)
in Ministry in Parish
Our
Story
The Chapel of Our
Lady of the Holy Souls began its
journey in November 1926 on the quaint island of New Providence, in
the Bahamas. The vision was to take Catholicism “over the hill”
into the deep south of the City of Nassau. Already Catholicism was
visible in the north with St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, and in the
east with Sacred Heart Parish. Fr. Hilderbrand Eickhoff,
osb,
spearheaded this visionary venture.
In 1932, an
extension was added to meet the expanding needs of the community
under the leadership of Fr. Arnold Mondlock, of the Order of St.
Benedict osb. At that
time, the altar was built from stone and rock collected and made
usable by parishioners. During the church renovation in
2003,
portions of the original altar were used for the Blessed Sacrament
Chapel, thus preserving past workmanship and blending it to current
needs. Air conditioning was also added, and the church temperature
went from hot to cold, from the unbearable summer heat to the cool
comfort we now enjoy. The Blessed Damien Chapel was also part of
the renovation project. It was named in honor of Damien De Veuster,
ss.cc., who loved and cared for people stricken with Hansen’s
Disease (leprosy) who were sent to die on the island of Molokai.
Our Lady of the Holy Souls, Celebrating 80 years!
Our
Lady of the Holy Souls Momentous events:
A
Community of Spirit and Service
 From its inception,
Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church focused on galvanizing community
spirit and service. Lay participation or ministries in the church
(as we know it today) is not a totally new
phenomenon.
Fr. Marcian Peters and Fr. Cornelius started the Holy Name Society
for men, while the Sisters of Charity formed the Sodality for women
to facilitate participation in religious and non-religious Church
activities. The Sodality evolved into the Lady’s Guild, and today we
know this group as the Women’s Auxiliary. Fr. Cornelius established
the
Legion of Mary for both male and female members of the church.
During the 1950s,
Fr. Marcian Peters, the serving priest, introduced and organized a
credit union. It encouraged persons to serve and help each other,
which proved to be most beneficial and successful.
The bell that sits
at the top of the church served as a time piece for many in the
community of Nassau. The bell was rung consistently each day at
6:00 a.m., 7:00 a.m. and 12:00 noon. Ringing at noon, the bell was a
signal for Catholics to stop whatever they were doing and pray the
Angelus. Many persons have claimed to have heard the bell’s
toll all the way to St. Francis Xavier Cathedral, West Hill Street.
Our Lady of the
Holy Souls continues to serve the Archdiocese as a church for the
training for the priesthood, pastoral duties and offers pastoral
experience to seminarians, deacons and nuns.
"Serving
God’s People: “The
health of the nation is the wealth of the nation”
For the past 80 years (1926 – 2006) Our Lady of the
Holy Souls has remained a church of the people constructed by the
people and among the people to serve God’s People. On the Church
grounds there is a primary school beginning with kindergarten up
through sixth grade. The current enrollment is 411.
 In January 1927, approximately two months after the
building of the Chapel, Our Lady’s School was started by the
Sisters of
Charity, with an enrollment of 56 students. Today, the school is
highly respected by the entire Island of New Providence because of
its renowned success in academics, sports and cultural affairs, such
as Junior Junkanoo and the Ministry of Education Spring Festival of
Music.
Our parish became central to the diocesan health
thrust when it established the Marian Clinic on our grounds to
service the entire island. Later this clinic was closed, when the
Hardecker Clinic opened. Even though the focus of these clinics was
mothers and children, free care was provided for all throughout the
Island of New Providence. It was a sad day when the clinics closed
their doors (as government took more responsibilities for health),
but a happy day when the building was refurbished to house the
Y.E.A.S.T. Program. This program is geared to strengthen our young
adult males who present a challenge in a regular classroom setting.
The focus is on empowerment and skills training for youth who need a
second chance.
Our Parish Continues to serve
The Church today
continues to assist Bahamians from far and wide as it did many years
ago. The Sisters of Charity, who served at Our Lady of the Holy
Souls, established a program for the community that, up through the
late 1960s, distributed cheese, powdered milk, clothes and
sometimes jewelry donated from parishes in New York. Water was also
provided for the community from the water tank constructed beneath
the floor of Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church.
Today the St.
Vincent de Paul Society, organized by Mr. Ottway A. Pratt in 1963 at
St. Francis Xavier Cathedral Parish, with Mr. Reuben Hamilton as the
representative for Our Lady of the Holy Souls Church, still provides
personal care and assistance by running a clothing and canned goods
outlet for the needy. Items are distributed almost daily with
assistance from church and parish staff. Ms. Henrietta Miller,
parish secretary, interrupts her office work to distribute food
items to people in need who come to the rectory. Now under the
Presidency of Mrs. Lillian Jones, the society also operates a soup
kitchen on Saturday morning and provides Christmas packages to
people who otherwise would go without.
Our Lady of the
Holy Souls provides a hot lunch each Wednesday for those in need of
food, and our various Areas of Ministry take turns in providing The
Blessed Damien Banquet on the last Saturday of each month, where
“rich and poor” sit and share at a common table. Introduced in
1999 by Fr. Michael Kelly, ss.cc., this ministry was inspired
through the charism of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts, SS.CC.,
the religious order to which Blessed Damien de Veuster belonged.
Among those who are brought are seniors
from old folks homes, people who are ill, children from
various children’s homes, and others from the community and parish.
Parish
Development
The many priests
who served the Parish of Our Lady of the Holy Souls have contributed
significantly to the development of the parish as it is today.
Under the leadership of Fr. Patrick Holmes, diocesan priest, the
church underwent massive renovations and changes which included :
- the relocation
of the altar after Vatican II;
- the original
wooden floor was changed to concrete;
- the seating
was rearranged and one hundred benches (pews) were added to
accommodate the growing community of worshippers;
- the
installation of the magnificent imitation stained glass backdrop
depicting Mary appearing to children;
- The change
from the traditional church organ to a pipe organ, donated in
1976 by Mr. Leo Lundy in fond memory of his wife Agnes.
- Mass schedules
were changed to 6:30 a.m., 8:15a.m. and 7:00 p.m. CCD classes
followed the 8:15 morning liturgy.
- The religious,
social and community consciousness were expanded and
crystallized under the pastorship of Fr. Christopher Grannell,
ss.cc. Only with us for a short time, his legacy of service to
the less fortunate is imprinted on the hearts and minds of
parishioners. Just three years after his sudden death, Fr.
Chris Grannell’s dream of a parish centre that would offer an
outreach program opened its doors on February 22, 1993. This
was accomplished with Fr. John Johnson, the resident priest at
the time.
Those Who Have Served
As with life there is death. Fr. Chris Grannell, ss.cc.,
will be remembered as the priest who “looked out for the needy”, and who died while preparing for
Mass. Sr. Clare Hass, GSIC, from Canada, will be remembered for her parish work and training of
Eucharistic Ministers. She too suffered a tragic death. Both are
remembered and talked about with warmth, gratitude and great
admiration.
Many priests and sisters served the community of Our
Lady of the Holy Souls, molding lives and turning them into loyal
followers and witnesses for Christ. They promoted the faith and
doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church through the administration of
the sacraments and education. Other priests who served were: Fr.
George Wolff, Fr. Remy David, and Fr. Silvan Bromenshenkel, and
Msgr. Preston A. Moss, among many, many others.
Others who served prior to their ordination to the
priesthood included: Monsignor Alfred Culmer and Patrick Pinder (now
Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Nassau), Fr. David Cooper,
Fr. Alain Laverne, Fr. Elvado Turnquest (ordained in 2005).
Permanent Deacons with roots in Our Lady of the Holy Souls Parish
are: Lou Adderley, Lawrence Bethel, and our currently serving
Deacons, are Rev. Peter Rahming and Rev. Maxwell Johnson.
“In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit”
Our 2002 / 2003 church renovations included a new
church roof, a new Blessed Sacrament Chapel, a baptismal pool near
the church entrance, the addition of the Blessed Damien Chapel for
daily liturgy, a new reconciliation room, a sound room, and semi-
circular seating. When our renovation expenses are paid, the pipe
organ will be repaired.
 Called to living faith, our community has increased
its concentration on stewardship of our time, treasure and talent. Our
current pastor, Fr. Michael Kelly, ss.cc., encouraged parishioners
to become more involved in multiple aspects of parish and church
life by using the imagery of the face of God.
We celebrate the Lord’s life giving face, the loving
face, the youthful face, the personal face, the wisdom face, the
faithful face, the happy face, the caring face, the friendship
face, and the missionary face.
·
The
Parish Pastoral Council is to reflect the life giving face through
its leadership.
·
All aspects of
“Liturgical Ministry” come under “the loving face”;
·
“The youthful
face” identifies with our youth and young adults in their needs and
in their dreams;
·
Human needs are
very personal and reflect “the personal face” of our God.
·
Belonging to the
Archdiocese of Nassau, and to the Community of the Bahamas, we see a
wealth of wisdom under “the wisdom face” of God.
·
Parish activities
are many and varied and each falls under “the faithful face”.
·
Finances,
fund-raising and gifts received are a source of happiness and belong
under “the happy face” of our happy God.
·
Education,
through our Catholic school and our Religious Education Programs
help form “the friendship face.”
·
Stewardship,
including evangelization and ecumenical activities, help present
“the lord’s face.”
·
The missionary
activity of the Church, and the SS.CC. community reflects God’s
“missionary face”.
In Thanksgiving
 We are grateful to our helpers, workers and
benefactors, to all who give generously to support our local church
of Our Lady of the Holy Souls, the Archdiocese of Nassau in which we
minister, and the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and
Mary, through which ministry and the building of God’s kingdom is
made possible here.
Our church bulletin is not just announcements but is
an invitation and call to all to ministry and service. May God add
his blessing to our people’s generosity as we at Our Lady of the
Holy Souls Catholic Parish celebrate our 80th Year (1926
– 2006)
Our Lady of the Holy Souls, Celebrating 80 years!
Willamae Stuart, Princess Lewis.
Immaculata Hamilton, Lillian Jones & Fr. Michael Kelly, ss.cc.
Our Lady of
the Holy Souls Parish and Faith Community,
Deveaux &
Young Streets
P.O. Box
N-8187 – Tel. 242-325-4521- e-mail: faith@Batelnet.bs
Nassau,
Bahamas
(1926 –
2006)
Congregation
of the Sacred Hearts (ss.cc.) in Ministry in Parish
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