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by Priscilla Greear
DULUTH—Just as St. Monica, through faith, love and years of
perseverance, finally led her rebel son, St. Augustine, home to the church in
the fourth century, pioneering members of St. Monica’s Parish have
fulfilled a Jubilee Year dream of faith and found their own home with the
completion of their new house of worship.
Archbishop John F. Donoghue said at the Mass of Dedication Feb. 19
that St. Monica’s saintly spirit will guide the parish as it grows and
stretches its wings of love deep into Duluth.
“The example of St. Monica is now to be the guiding spirit of
this parish, and I have every conviction, that even as St. Monica’s faith
and her hope were fulfilled in the greatness of her son, St. Augustine, who
came to treasure and champion the Catholic Faith and his mother ... I know in
my heart that the dreams of the mothers and fathers of this parish will come
true as well, and that many saints and friends of God, will call this Church,
this parish, their home, and bless forever the Father in Heaven who gave it to
them, and the memory of the good men and women who brought it into being,”
he said.
It was apparent at the dedication Mass on the cold evening that it
already is a home to many. Archbishop Donoghue celebrated Mass, which was
concelebrated by pastor Father Greg Goolsby, founding pastor Father Stewart
Wilber, pastor at St. Theresa’s Church in Douglasville, and Msgr. Terry
Young, former pastor of St. Benedict’s Church, Duluth, from which the
church was established. Five other archdiocesan priests joined in the
celebration. The joyful anticipation for the first Mass in the new building ran
deeper than any sense of fatigue or sacrifice as the crowd of over 1,000
members and visitors stood at the church’s threshold where building
committee chairman Bill Cripps presented the keys to the archbishop.
The dedication realized a dream for the congregation, which had
worshipped for six years in the auditorium of North Gwinnett High School in
Buford. St. Monica’s, a parish of over 1,000 families, was established as
a mission of St. Benedict’s in 1994, and the first Mass was celebrated at
the high school for about 200 people by Father Wilber. The first education
classes were held in the mission in 1995 after which many other programs
unfolded.
In the ceremony the archbishop blessed the building with holy
water while the parish choir led the congregation in “River of
Glory.” Mark Coughlin sang the upbeat “Cry the Gospel.”
In his homily the archbishop spoke about how centuries ago Monica
often battled with a young, brilliant Augustine, who had taken the wrong path
and could outsmart almost anyone. He told how Monica, after one heated
argument, had a dream where she was weeping over her son’s stubbornness
and hell-bound ways before an angel told her to stop crying and that “your
son is with you,” leaving her overjoyed by this vision of her son’s
salvation. He said that, like St. Monica, the church is the mother of character
and virtue who calls her children to bring their talents, joys, sorrows and
dedication to the altar of God and watches over them. He said that St.
Monica’s parishioners are living that vision.
“(You are) men and women who understand the necessity of
conversion and of repentance—men and women who understand that the value
of life is somehow connected to being with the Church, and not being on their
own—men and women who have understood that love, constancy, devotion,
generosity, and faith ... are the real energies by which we can live our lives,
and by which we can fuel our hopes, and by which we can obtain the grace to see
our own destinies...”
He spoke of the many future heavenly banquets. “The church
building we dedicate today, the result of not only your willingness, but your
eagerness to bring yourselves and your gifts before God, will now reflect all
the blessings which God will give you in return. A place, first of all, to
receive forgiveness of sins, and to partake in the holiest communion ... But
also a place to solemnize, to memorialize, to render sacred, all the moments,
the stages, the progressions of our human lives together—births, deaths,
baptisms, leave-takings, marriages—and less grand but still deeply
important moments in life—quiet prayer before the altar—conversations
of resolution and peace with pastors and priests—and times of sociability
and friendship...”
“All of this ... you have prepared for the Lord your God, and
all of this, we offer together today...”
He then anointed and incensed the altar after which the entire
church was illuminated. The archbishop exposed the Blessed Sacrament for
dedication of the Eucharistic Chapel.
Father Goolsby thanked the many supporters including “our
deacon emeritus,” Deacon Walker King, Catholic Construction Services’
supervisor Dennis Kelly and site construction supervisor Ernie Norsworthy who
the pastor said is Methodist but is “an honorary Catholic. Now we’ve
decided he’s a Metholic ... He has worked miracles.” He thanked Jim
Bell, who designed statues depicting the Holy Family and another of Christ
suspended over the altar on a 200-year-old Belgian cross. Bell is also
designing a baptismal font and statue of Sts. Monica and Augustine. Father
Goolsby also acknowledged altar designer Dr. Ron Zuwilla of Chicago. In
addition, parishioner Catherine Gentile painted a picture of St. Monica, which
welcomes people as they enter the gathering area.
“Thank you for letting me be your shepherd and thank you for
making this night so dear and so beautiful and so holy. God has gathered you
here to bless this house of prayer,” he said. “May God free you from
every bond of sin and dwell with you forever.”
The $4.5 million project, partially funded through the
archdiocesan Capital Campaign, was designed by architectural firm Leo A. Daly
Co., Atlanta, and built by construction firm Dudley Barrett Construction Co.,
Roswell. Construction began in March 1999 and was completed in February. The
church seats 750 worshippers, plus space for overflow crowds. An education and
administration building has 15 classrooms, eight offices and a conference hall.
Rooms are graced with unique art such as a portrait of the late Archbishop
James P. Lyke, OFM, and a Madonna and child statue. A memorial garden and bell
tower “to proclaim the voice of God” are on the horizon. The
buildings are part of a master plan for construction on the 31-acre property,
which will include a community life building and an archdiocesan elementary
school called the Light of Christ School. The current church will eventually
become the parish hall once a permanent church is built in the coming years.
Cripps was in awe of the new facility. “It’s community.
It’s like God’s creation,” he said.
A civil engineer, Cripps said that 25 people served on the
building committee and various subcommittees. Members tried to involve the
congregation in the process so as to meet community needs.
“We built the parish based on the input of all organizations
in the community. We welcomed everyone who showed up to volunteer,” he
said. “We presented the project as we were developing it ... We gave a lot
of tours during the commitment (stage) to help bring the project to life for
them instead of bringing them a photograph.”
He added, “This is the most square-footage built in the
archdiocese for the dollar amount associated with it and that’s what
we’re most proud of.”
With many activities, including 900 children in religious
education classes and over 250 in the RENEW program, director of religious
education Kate Oates said that the community has always been a church.
“We have done everything that every other parish does.
We’ve just done it on the road. I’m very proud of the parish. We
didn’t wait until we had a building to get a parish. People would call and
say, ‘When are you going to get your church?’ Father Goolsby would
say, ‘We already have a church’ and that’s the spirit
here,” she said.
As many parish meetings were held in the rectory, Oates said she
and others had been “working out of trunks of cars.” She initiated
LIFE religious education events for all ages, which the parish will continue
while developing senior, youth, young adult and other programs.
“We’re trying to have a lot of ageless programs in this
parish because that’s one of the strengths of this community. It’s a
really strong parish ... It’s the love of each other and love of worship
together. That’s what makes this building so unique to me.”
Recalling darker days, she said one July the school lost
electricity and children had to escort worshippers to the lighted gym.
“We had the pioneer days when we had no (air conditioner). We
had ‘funeral fans’ that we passed out with our missalettes ... Every
week we had a different gym (treat)—one was root beer floats, one was
watermelon, one was popsicles,” she said. “It’s been fun. I
think we’re going to kind of miss it in a way.”
Founding parishioner Marty Rouch, a liturgical coordinator, beamed
with pride.
“We’ve been waiting five and a half years for this ...
It’s really a great thing to finally get to this point. It created a
community like no other ... We hope it doesn’t change a bit (but that) it
just gets bigger. We’ve got too many great people here. In the next five
years we’ll probably be big enough to begin the main church,
hopefully.”
He recalled setting up for Mass on Saturdays in the school
auditorium and then taking things down on Sundays unless the drama club had a
Saturday show where he’d have to clear the stage Saturday night and later
reset it.
Eighth-grader Zach Germann, a choir member, is particularly glad
to move into the new church.
“The music is a lot better. The speakers and the sound system
(are better). We’ve finally got our own (religion) school building. Being
at the church we can go whenever we want. We don’t have to make plans. We
don’t have to work around everybody’s schedule.”
He added, “... I’d like to make a lot more friends. I
was kind of hoping that some of the people from other churches and some of my
friends would also come.”
Sitting in his new office, Father Goolsby agreed that the high
school worship services were “a cross and a crown” as persons hauled
over two vans and three sport utility vehicles of equipment every weekend. Yet
it was at the high school where the parish’s guiding principles for
quality liturgies, religious education and teaching the Gospel were
established.
“If they’re fed here with liturgy and education then
they’ll go and work (for) justice, trying to lift the poor up.
They’ll go to the marketplace and bring an ethical appreciation. I think
our (parishioners) strive very hard to do that,” he said. “Having a
new building for liturgy allows us to be much more creative and expand liturgy
to pursue that first goal. Having the classrooms, it’s really going to
allow us to accommodate a lot more in our religious education program.”
Like St. Monica, the pastor is confident that his pioneers have
strength to climb their next mountain. “People who come to St.
Monica’s are not here for statues and stained glass. They’re
pioneers. They are people who come to Christ in the church ... They come
because they want to be filled by Eucharist; they’re nourished by
sacraments. They’re not the kind of people who are complacent about their
faith. Being at the high school draws a kind of people that are excited about
the faith.”
Father Goolsby described the anticipation of parishioners ready to
blossom.
“Now that we’re in here I think (we’re feeling)
just the excitement of what we’re going to be able to do in this vibrant
place. The people are champing at the bit to get up and running and to create
the home that we’ve been dreaming about. I expect it’s exhausting
work to create the programs.”
Their first program for the following dedication week was a spring
renewal celebrating the past and future. It included programs on spirituality,
friendship, community and family values and an installation of the Stations of
the Cross, with the theme “New Millennium, New Beginnings.”
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