Parishes unify and centralise, ready for future

The Municipal Theatre was packed for last month's historic parish unification mass. Photos / Paul Taylor

Just over two weeks since the amalgamation of Napier's three Catholic parishes into one, the church is facing a second notable event - the future of its centralised parish house.

The four lay staff and three priests, who previously worked within the three parishes of St Mary's, St Patrick's and St Thomas More, are presently working out of the unified parish's temporary site at St Mary's in Greenmeadows. As Parish Pastoral Council member David Marshall said, the new location would be at the more central St Patrick's Church but money would have to be spent.

Lucy Greaney from Napier holds the book of readings for Bishop Charles Drenna.

The Parish House at the church was now vacant and two options for its future were now on the table. It would either be converted and refurbished up to earthquake-risk levels or demolished to make way for a new office building. "That is the challenge we have to take on," he said.

Both options would be investigated, including the respective costs, and a meeting would be organised this month or early next month with parishioners to go over them. The amalgamation had also sparked the formation of the Parish Pastoral Council which Mr Marshall said would result in greater church involvement by lay members.

He described the unification mass on May 24 as probably the most significant event in the 165-year history of the church in Napier.

The event was celebrated by Bishop Charles Drenna, the Bishop of Palmerston North Diocese and the three priests of the new parish Father Peter Head, Father Mike Wooller and Father John Mori. The event saw the Municipal Theatre in Napier packed with about 1000 people.

Mr Marshall said the overwhelming reaction to the change was a positive one, and a similar unification of the three Hastings parishes into one was under way. The first Catholic community was formed on the banks of the Ahuriri estuary 165 years ago with the first mission station set up at Poukawa in 1850, with that community formally becoming a parish at Meeanee in 1858.

The parish is today known as St Mary's. In 1859 the St Patrick's parish was founded on the hill before moving to Munro St. In 1969 the suburbs of Maraenui, Pirimai and Onekawa saw St Thomas More Church built. Mr Marshall said unification into one parish did not mean the closure of two of the churches.

Services would continue at all three and a "hub" of volunteers would be at them each morning to deal with parishioner inquiries and provide hospitality "for visitors from wherever they might come".