St. Peter Parish Kicks Off Bicentennial Celebration
St. Peter Parish in Montgomery kicked off its bicentennial celebration during weekend Masses on July 14-15. French missionaries founded the parish in 1818.
Holy Cross Father James Connelly from the University of Notre Dame, general archivist for the Order of Holy Cross and an enthusiastic historian, visited the parish and provided a look at the service to St. Peter Parish by the missionaries of Holy Cross, which occurred in the early 1840s.
Most striking was one sentence Father Connelly shared from the journal of Holy Cross Father Edward Sorin, who arrived in Daviess County in October 1841 with six Holy Cross brothers.
“St. Peter’s has a cheerful look,” he wrote. The sentiment and atmosphere of those words to mind was evident during the 9:30 a.m. Mass on July 15.
Pastor Father Jim Koressel welcomed people who filled the sanctuary, some from out of town, and introduced Father Connelly. “We really appreciate him being with us,” Father Koressel said.
The day’s Mass readings focused on missionaries and apostles going out to evangelize (first reading, from the book of Amos, and the Gospel, from Mark), and on God’s many blessings (second reading, from Ephesians). Father Connelly drew on them as he recounted the 15-month history of the Holy Cross brothers’ and Father Sorin’s service to the parish and the Montgomery area.
He explained that neither Father Sorin nor the six brothers who accompanied him spoke English. He explained that the group reported to their home in France that it might be wise to develop materials in three languages because many of the local residents were German immigrants – so English, French and German were heard and spoken in the area.
Father Connelly recounted the missionaries’ two-month journey from France to Montgomery – one month to cross the Atlantic from Europe and a second month to journey by water and land from New York to Indiana. Bishop Célestine Guynemer de la Hailandière of Vincennes assigned them to Montgomery, and they arrived in Daviess County on Oct. 13, 1841.
Father Connelly explained that the Holy Cross brothers who traveled with Father Sorin offered a wonderful mix of skills. Three of them were teachers; one was a cook and tailor; another was a carpenter; and one was a farmer. Because they arrived in the area after the end of the growing season, Father Connelly said the group depended on food donations from local residents to see them through their first winter.
Father Connelly said that Father Sorin reported that most area residents were Protestant, although there were about 50 Catholic families in the area. He reported that many of the Protestants attended Mass at St. Peter, and that many of them joined the Catholic families to participate in the Corpus Christi procession that Father Sorin and the brothers organized in 1842.
Bishop Simon Bruté, the first bishop of Vincennes, had sent then-Coadjutor Bishop of Vincennes Hailandière back to France to recruit priests and religious congregations to come to southwest Indiana to teach and evangelize. Father Sorin and the Holy Cross brothers were among a group who answered that call; it also included St. Mother Théodore Guérin. Bishop Bruté died in 1839 while Bishop Hailandière was in France. He succeeded Bishop Bruté and served as the second bishop of Vincennes from 1837 to 1847.
Like Bishop Bruté, Bishop Hailandière is buried beneath the Basilica of St. Francis Xavier in Vincennes.
The Holy Cross brothers and Father Sorin asked Bishop Hailandière for permission to open a college in Montgomery, but he declined. He noted that there already was a college in Vincennes, and he was not confident the area could support two schools. He offered the group a parcel of land in South Bend, and they departed Montgomery for South Bend in 1843. There they founded the University of Notre Dame.
Father Connelly noted that, based on their writings from the time, Father Sorin and the brothers would have preferred remaining in Montgomery. But he concluded with a reference to the Mass’ second reading, from St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians.
“The riches of God’s grace were lavished on the locals here in Montgomery, and on the missionaries from France,” he said.
Following Mass, the parish hosted a breakfast for everyone in attendance. It and the July 14-15 Masses were just the beginnings of a full week of activities surrounding the parish’s bicentennial.
The parish hosted a Euchre tournament that was open to all on July 16. The “entry fee” was a pie, and those baked goodies were shared by all during the event.
July 18 marked the 149th anniversary of the dedication of St. Peter Church. The parish welcomed Dr. David Lamb for an organ concert that evening.
The parish also was planning a July 2 fish fry, inviting everyone living in the Montgomery area to share a free fish dinner in honor of the bicentennial.
Bishop Joseph M. Siegel will celebrate the 9:30 a.m. Mass on July 22. Father Koressel will serve as homilist, and 4th Degree Knights of Columbus will provide an honor guard. Following Mass, the parish will enjoy a hog roast with all the trimmings.
The Message will have coverage of the July 18 organ concert and the July 22 Mass in the July 27 edition.
