Brandon Scott
The Archdiocese of Armagh has recently begun a special fundraising campaign to raise much needed funds for the maintenance and repair of St Patrick’s Cathedral, a project that is as much about the vital handing on of the Faith than mere architectural aesthetics, according to Parish Administrator Fr Barry Matthews.
Speaking to The Irish Catholic, Fr Matthews highlighted the features of the cathedral that need special attention due to wear and tear and how the work required needs a certain level of expertise.
Dedication
“Since the celebration of the 150th anniversary of the dedication of St Patrick’s Cathedral last year we’ve been working behind the scenes looking to see exactly what work needs to be done at the cathedral,” he said.
“There are three areas that are really key and crucial. One is water ingress, there’s a fair bit of damp and water issues in the cathedral. Because it’s an old building, you have a lot of repairs to make so there are areas around the building that just need to be sealed and secured.
“The iconic steps on the way up to the cathedral need to be relifted and relaid. But again, when you’re dealing with a Grade I listed building, anything you do like that has to be specialist workers and it has to be done in a way that keeps the integrity of the original structure in place.
“The third area we’re looking at is the organ. The great organ in the cathedral was built in 1878 so it needs to be maintained and repaired and in some cases replaced. This is a big job.”
In order to achieve the fundraising goals, the archdiocese has launched various diocese-wide initiatives and these have yielded a positive return so far.
“So what we’ve done so far is put the word out in the diocese,” he said. “We had a diocesan-wide collection and campaign where we asked people to support this. Any visitors that come to the cathedral have also been made aware of the fundraising. It’s going well so far – at this stage we’ve raised in the region of 10% of what we’re hoping to get. It’s a case now of putting a big push on to try and get the work done because we’ve quantified the work and know exactly the monetary value that we need to raise in order to achieve our goal.”
Exceptional
The cathedral’s rich legacy, coupled with its association with St Patrick, makes it one of the most exceptional structures on the island but although its architectural excellence is unquestionable, Fr Matthews sees this endeavour as above all being part of a duty of the faithful to hand down what they’ve inherited in the same condition as was given to them as custodians of the cathedral.
“I suppose the thing we’re really trying to remind people about is the idea that St Patrick’s Cathedral really is the seat of St Patrick in Ireland and it’s such an important pillar and space of faith and hope in the country,” he said.
“So many people who left the country left and have gone to the four corners of the world and the Faith is still so important to them still and we’re handing on the Faith that has been handed onto us to the next generation by supporting the cathedral and we all receive benefits from that.
“Each one of us has a sense of community and connectedness just because of our faith so we’re really trying to promote that. The cathedral really is iconic in its structure and it would be an awful shame to not see it being maintained. I’m very conscious as a custodian of the cathedral that I want to hand it on as well maintained as I’ve found it.”
To donate log onto armaghparish.net or send a donation to Fr Matthews directly at the parish office at 41a Cathedral Road.