BY ERIKA ANDERSON

Staff Writer

	Father Corbett

ALPHARETTA--Over 500 people were in attendance Nov. 1 as St. Brigid’s Mission of the Church of St. Benedict, Duluth, celebrated its first Sunday Mass.

Father Joe Corbett, administrator of St. Brigid’s, said he was amazed by the turnout.

“I was praying and hoping for about 150 people or 200 at the most, but there has been a wonderful response to news of a new Catholic community in this area,” he said. “I was so happy to see the mission’s first Sunday Mass so well attended.”

Over 200 families have already registered at the mission, which is located at 3400 Old Alabama Road. One of the three new Catholic schools, Holy Redeemer Elementary School, will be built on the same property and is scheduled to open in the fall of 1999.

However, Father Corbett said the strong response to the mission is not necessarily a result of the link to the new Catholic school.

“I think there is just a real, genuine need for a new Catholic presence in this area,” he said.

A house on the property is being used as a rectory and office for St. Brigid’s Mission and daily Mass is offered in a chapel in the basement. Sunday Masses are held in the auditorium of nearby Centennial High School, located about one mile away on Scott Road.

Daily Masses are offered on Monday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday at 9 a.m. and at 6 p.m. on Thursday. One 9 a.m. Mass is celebrated on Sunday, with plans to add additional Masses.

“Our top priority right now is our Sunday Mass and organizing the various liturgical ministries,” Father Corbett said. “We’ve had a lot of sign-ups and we’re going to continue to promote that each Sunday as new people come to Mass here at St. Brigid’s for the first time.”

Father Corbett is excited about the new mission and the opportunity to minister to the members of St. Brigid’s.

“The most exciting thing is being able to help people in their faith because there seems to be a great need for a new Catholic community in this area,” he said. “I’m grateful that the archbishop has given me this honor to help get this started under the direction of Msgr. Terry Young.”

Father Corbett said many of those joining St. Brigid’s are coming from the Church of St. Benedict, where Msgr. Young is pastor, and from other surrounding parishes, but that there are also many new Catholics in the area.

“During the summer months, there were a lot of new people moving into this area,” he said. “We have a lot of newcomers who were not previously registered at a parish.”

Father Corbett has spent months preparing for St. Brigid’s first Sunday Mass and said that he did a lot of advertising for the new mission. He also set up an e-mail address and said that he had a “tremendous response” from people communicating by electronic means.

Plans have not yet been made to build a church and Father Corbett’s goal for the mission is to minister to its members.

“I just hope to be able to continue to bring people closer to our God through our church in this area,” he said.

For information about St. Brigid’s Mission, contact Father Corbett at (678) 393-0060 or by e-mail at saintbrigid@juno.com.