St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Church
Upper Tantallon NS

St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Church, formerly St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Parish

In 2007, St. Marguerite Bourgeoys Parish was formed, amalgamating Sacred Heart Parish, Timberlea, St. James Mission Church, Hammond’s Plains, St. Margaret of Scotland Mission Church, Glen Margaret, and St. Luke’s Catholic Community, Tantallon. This amalgamation was a result of the recommendations made in the Forward in Faith Report.

Our NEW CHURCH, at 18 Scholars Rd in Upper Tantallon, opened June 1, 2016! The vision of our new church was a collaborative effort, coordinated by our Values and Concepts Committee, which evolved into the Parish Development Committee.

There are three panels at the entrance to the church, which contain stained glass from the sisters of charity. They have images of Christ as shepherd, Christ talking with the children and Christ meeting disciples. The symbolism draws us into the sacred and the mystery.

In the church are wooden pews with kneelers, yet another gift from the Sisters of Charity. Using the kneelers will be an adjustment for some of us as we have not had pews in some of our locations for a number of years. A final piece of stained glass will be at the Reconciliation room. It shows an Old Testament image of the prophet Jeremiah teaching and preaching.

Behind the altar is a large crucifix, central to our worship and identity. It was given to our parish from the Diocese of Antigonish, Christ the King parish.

The designers produced a building that imitated the shape of a boat when viewed from above – the bow is the worship area and the stern is the hall area. This is to recognize St. Marguerite Bourgeoy’s journey across the Atlantic as she struggled to establish community in the New World.

Also tied to her mission is the shape of the trees on the outside of the building – she taught children and women in the forest of Ville Montreal for years, without proper housing, always faithful and faith-filled that she was living God’s call for her and the community.

We wanted a facility that would be one level, no steps and have an accessible washroom – no barriers, so that all feel welcome.

We are a Catholic, Christian church. There is a large cross on the front so that all will know this is a Christian church when looking from the outside. Inside we have decorated with statues, pictures, crucifixes, a baptismal font, altar and much more. These objects help to make our faith visible for all to see.

We have pews and kneelers, donated by the Sisters of Charity as well as stained glass from the chapel of the Motherhouse to aid in our worship. There is a reconciliation room and a dedicated choir area.

The sense of community is evident in that the building is a multi-purpose space. We have a designated worship area. We also have a hall that is large enough to host Christmas pageants, religious education functions and community events. The kitchen has commercial grade appliances including a dishwasher and stove – all important to providing hospitality.

We have three large meeting rooms that can be used for meetings, prayer groups, and formation purposes.

We recognize our past. The Interior Committee established guidelines to fairly judge what items should be used in our new space. The guidelines included: Liturgical component: How does this item work as part of our liturgy? Inclusive component: Are we including items from all locations? Budget component: Being respectful of the budget included installation of pews, kitchen appliances and interior design. Physical Size/Condition: Does this t in our new space, will there be much repair needed? Our Baptismal font is permanent and is located in the entrance. It is from Sacred Heart – made by the late Brian O’Neil. The vessel which sits atop the Baptismal font has been generously donated by parishioners, Wayne and Lea Trowse.

Our ambry that contains the oils for Baptism, Confirmation and Annointing of the Sick is from St. James. The Paschal candle stand is from Sacred Heart. Our altar is from St. Margaret’s of Scotland – an altar that fits the space and is part of our history as a parish. The Stations of the Cross are from Sacred Heart. The Processional cross is from St. James and the Tabernacle is from Sacred Heart.

Walking toward our future. Our new church is a combination of who we were, who we are now and who we strive to be in the future. As you walk towards the church, you see the 15 windows, that are part of the hall, meeting rooms and offices, which have stained glass at the top. This glass was part of the Chapel for the Sisters of Charity in their Motherhouse. The purpose of stained glass is to be decorative as well as inviting. This is our first part of welcome and invitation. The yellow, blue and green glass windows were chosen to represent the sea, sky and earth – to remind us of the wonders of creation. The colours also represent St. Marguerite Bourgeoys. These colours have been used by the Sisters of Notre Dame to portray the image of a daisy, the flower of St. Marguerite Bourgeoys. In the foyer of the large gathering space you see a carved table with St. Marguerite Bourgeoys’ name and flowers – this is a gift from the Sisters Of Notre Dame, Pictou and was crafted by a Mi’kmaq artisan more than 50 years ago. There is also a painting by one of our parishioners who shared his conversion through his art. We have been gifted with a bust of Jesus that contains artifacts from our three church locations.

 

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