A dream held by many has finally come to reality! St Luke’s parish, once congregating in the Sancta Maria College auditorium has finally got a place to call home, St Luke’s Church. The new church is located behind the college and will be a place not only for the primary, college and parish to congregate in, but also for the wider community of Flat Bush.
Not long ago in October, St Luke’s Catholic community was officially declared a parish and just 7 months later, on Saturday the 1st of May, the official and solemn dedication service of St Luke’s Church was held. The 1st of May was also the Feast of St Joseph the Worker – the earthly father of Jesus Christ. The first St Luke’s community met in the College Chapel, then expanded to the Auditorium. This expansiondrove the idea for a proper Church on the campus.
The main celebrant of the mass was Bishop Patrick Dunn DD, Bishop of Auckland and the assisting celebrant was Michael Gielen DD, Auxiliary Bishop of Auckland. The celebration included the Karanga (led by our primary school and college Kapa Haka combined group, taught by Mrs. Ruki and Mr. Bacon), Blessing of the Baptismal Font, Blessing of the Ambo (lectern), Blessing & Anointing of the Altar, Blessing of the Tabernacle and the Blessing of the Sacred Images of the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. Joseph.
During the dedication and anointing of the Altar, two relics of two different saints were put into the Altar. These relics were sent from the Vatican in Rome to our Parish; they were a Cloth with the Blood of St. John Paul the Second, and a hair strand of Mother Teresa.
A special thank you to Fr Ezio Blasoni SM (the first parish priest of St. Luke’s) for all the hours you put into creating and forming St Luke’s Parish and starting to fundraise for the dream of building a church. Another special thank you to Fr. Craig Dunford (current parish priest) for all the countless hours you have put into fundraising making the dream of a church reality.
Thank you to all the college students which assisted in the mass or outside in the Traffic management, the running of the barbeques, and the entertainment. We wish God’s blessings to St Luke’s Parish in their new chapter and new endeavours.
Photos by: Cheryl Surrey from All the Daisies Photography. For more photos of the day, go to https://allthedaisies.queensberryworkspace.com/stlukes
