Littlehampton unites to hail church's 150th year

INSIDE St Catherine's Church's Gothic-style walls lies a rich wealth of history. Over the years it has seen thousands of worshippers from across Littlehampton kneel in prayer.
By The Newsroom
Published 3rd Jun 2013, 08:00 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 06:02 BST
Father Dominic OHara looks at St Catherines history at a display in the church to mark its 150th year L22080H13Father Dominic OHara looks at St Catherines history at a display in the church to mark its 150th year L22080H13
Father Dominic OHara looks at St Catherines history at a display in the church to mark its 150th year L22080H13

It’s a history and tradition that was celebrated by modern-day Catholics, at the weekend, as the Beach Road church marked its 150th anniversary with four days of festivities.

Hundreds of people gathered to mark the milestone event, which began with a fish and chip supper at St Catherine’s on Friday evening (May 24).

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More than 100 revellers packed into the church to take part in the dinner, including the church’s former priest, Fr Albert van der Most.

It wasn’t all smooth sailing for the celebrations, with Saturday’s traditional Portuguese dancing display being cancelled at the 11th hour.

However, as the sun rose brightly on Sunday, events soon picked up pace with dozens of worshippers taking part in mass, led by the Rt Rev Kieran Conry, Bishop of Arundel and Brighton.

Bishop Kieran was joined by current parish priest Fr Dominic O’Hara and Fr Albert and about 250 people from the church’s congregation during the morning mass.

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After the event, people gathered outside to watch a stunning procession of traditional Indian dancing – followed by some more contemporary, Bollywood routines and even a display of Korean pop super star’s Psy’s now iconic “Gangnam Style” dance – before tucking into a feast of Indian cuisine, while being entertained with various performances throughout the afternoon.

On Monday, dozens of families and people took part in a picnic and some fun and games at the church to bring a close to celebrations.

Mike Webber, one of those organising the festivities, said everything had gone splendidly well.

“It was excellent and we had fantastic weather on the Sunday, which was wonderful.

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“For us, this is such a monumental moment in the church’s and the parish’s history.

“It’s really rather rare for a Roman Catholic church, built in the 1860s, that’s not based in Ireland or the northern industrial areas of England, to survive this length of time. So it’s an important occasion and one we should celebrate,” said Mike.

For more, see Thursday’s Gazette (May 30).