Sacred Heart Catholic, Donnington Primary celebrate 110 years

The Sacred Heart Roman Catholic Church in Donnington, St Mary, and the Donnington Primary School celebrated their 110th anniversary on Sunday with a full church hearing the homily presented by Archbishop of Kingston the Most Reverend Kenneth D. Richards.

The archbishop was assisted by the Reverend Chaprath Thomas and deacons David Yee Sing, Terrence Gillette, and Winston Mars.

A packed church, including several students of Donnington Primary, which is located on the same premises, was on hand to participate in the anniversary service, which saw the archbishop describing Donnington as one of Jamaica’s strongest church communities.

In his discourse, Richards urged the congregation to practise forgiveness, recalling how Jesus lived. He point out that ultimately, that is what is required to bring order to the world.

“We call ourselves Christians, so we must be like Christ,” Richards urged.

“When he was mistreated, what did he say? ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what they have done.’

“Practise to say those words over and over again; say it for your wife, say it for your husband, say it for your parents, say it for your children, say it for your neighbour ‘Father, forgive them for they know not what they do’. And keep repeating it over and over again so it becomes a part of your thinking. When we begin at that level, then we need to escalate it to another level,” the archbishop said.

Church member Delrose Campbell, in tracing the history of the church, revealed that the institution had gone through several name changes.

Established at its current location in 1909, the original name of the church was St Patrick’s, which remained until 1924.

From 1924 to 1950, the church was named Holy Cross Church, and since 1950, it has been Sacred Heart Church.

It was Bishop Charles Menzies Gordon, the fourth vicar apostolic of Jamaica, who bought the Donnington Castle property, then a large banana plantation, in 1897 with the intention to start an agriculture school.

A temporary chapel was built on the property in 1899 by Fr Denis Lynch, with the first Mass being celebrated there on October 31, 1899. However, it was in 1909 that a substantial building was constructed and called St Patrick’s, under Bishop John Joseph Collins, the fifth vicar apostolic of Jamaica. A school was also established, with the church building being utilised to hold classes.

A separate building to house the school was built in 1941. In 1950, a new concrete structure was erected to house the church.

Before that, a teacher’s cottage was built in 1939.

Campbell reminded the congregation that while the church had gone through several name changes, both church and school continue to be “the bastion of spiritual and educational development of community members. The physical buildings and structures may change over the years; what has not changed is the power of the Holy Spirit and the love manifest in the sacred heart of Jesus. What has not changed is the purpose of these institutions”.

Several students of the school turned out to pay tribute in song and were duly blessed by Richards, and so, too, were several past and current staff members.

The celebrations, which are taking place under the theme ‘Celebrating Excellence Through Worship and Education,’ are scheduled to continue at the school during the week. Among the activities planned are a fun day, a health fair, an awards ceremony, and a dinner.