The altar from Wellington’s landmark St Gerard’s Church and Monastery has been given to the city’s Catholic Sacred Heart Cathedral for future use.
St Gerard’s former owner, the Institute for World Evangelisation (ICPE Mission), has been finding new homes for furniture and other items after selling the earthquake-prone buildings in March. Particular attention was given to sacred items, many of which have historical value to the Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington.
Following talks with the Archdiocese, ICPE is donating the Altar from the main church to the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Sacred Heart, which is in Hill Street, and is itself closed for renovation and earthquake-strengthening.
Catholic Archbishop of Wellington Paul Martin SM is delighted.
“I am personally excited that a cherished part of St Gerard’s history – and of the Catholic history of Wellington – will live on within our Cathedral, which is home to all the People of God in the Archdiocese,” he said.
St Gerard’s Church (built 1908) and Monastery (built 1932) were originally owned by the Redemptorists, a Catholic religious congregation of priests and brothers. They were then acquired in 1993 by ICPE Mission, which is an international Catholic lay missionary organisation. ICPE Mission decided to sell St Gerard’s because it could not raise the money needed for strengthening the buildings.
Following the sale, the ICPE community has been emptying the monastery and donating items, such as furniture, to community organisations which could make good use of them, including, Kahungungu Whānau Services, St Vincent de Paul, Catholic Social Services and the Salvation Army.
Wellington Archdiocese Pastoral Ministry Advisor Lucienne Hensel, who also raised her family in St Gerard’s Monastery as part of the ICPE Community, has been working with local organisations to rehome the items. “It was great to see many of the household items moving on to worthwhile causes,” she said.
Plans are currently under way to move the altar from St Gerard’s to the cathedral site as part of the Cathedral’s restoration project. Sacred Heart Cathedral is still fundraising for the restoration project, which began after the cathedral was closed in July 2018 following a reduced earthquake rating.
To learn more about the Sacred Heart Cathedral restoration project please visit: https://www.cathedralcampaign.org.nz/
Photo by David Hensel.