“Since many have undertaken to compile a narrative of the events that have been fulfilled among us, just those who were eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word have handed them down to us, I too have decided, after investigating everything accurately anew, to write it down in an orderly sequence for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may realize the teaching you have received.” Luke 1:1-4                                                            HISTORY Sacred Heart Church Church of the Holy Cross Saint John Vianney Sacred Heart Church From a homily by Fr. Ray Ethier on the 100th Anniversary of Sacred Heart Church Building, the Feast of the Sacred Heart, June 7, 2002               To my brother priest, and deacons, friends and parishioners of Sacred Heart…a warm welcome to all of you!  We gather on this beautiful June evening, this Feast Day of the Sacred Heart of Jesus to celebrate a dual Anniversary:  Our church building’s one-hundredth birthday and the One Hundred and Twentieth Anniversary of the founding of this Parish.             How does one capture 100/120 years in a homily?  It’s like the problem of Maria in The Sound  of Music, which I saw last week at the MacHaydn Theatre, which asks:  “How do you catch a wave upon the sand?  How do you hold a moonbeam in your hand?  I suspect you don’t.  Let me simply touch upon three facets: (1) A little history; (2) A building; (3) And people.             First, a little history.  I begin by quoting from a newspaper clipping found in the Bible of Joe and Jim Haag’s parents.  “The earliest evidence of public Catholic worship in the village of Philmont is the recorded fact that the Eucharist was offered there in 1852, at the homes of Mr. John Hayes and Mr. Thomas Dooley.  The Rev. William Howard, then pastor of St. Mary’s Church, Hudson, was the celebrant, and he made the 10-mile trip by horse and wagon every three months.  At other times, those who were able drove or even walked into Hudson to assist at Mass and receive the sacraments.             This arrangement prevailed under Father Howard’s successors, until 1882, when the Sacred Heart parish was established.  The Rev. James J. Moriarty became the first priest to reside in Philmont, and the following year, he built a small wooden church structure: Sacred Heart Church.             Two years later, the Parish House was built on land donated by the mills, and the Rev. Thomas McLoughlin was to be the second pastor until 1893.  Incidentally, it was at this time in history that dial telephones, motion pictures and color photography were coming into existence in our great country.             Second, a building: The next pastor of Sacred Heart was the Rev. Patrick Harrigan who shepherded the flock of Philmont from 1893-1906.  During his pastorate kerosene street lamps were installed, streets had been officially named, and hose carts and hooks and ladders were purchased for the newly formed Philmont Volunteer Co. # 1.  And at the corner of Main and Ark Streets in the year 1902, the present Sacred Heart Church was built, replacing the original wooden structure.              Father Harrigan, upon completing the Church, prepared an inventory on April 1, 1904, some of which reads: “Church, 60 pews, organ, 2 chalices, 5 sets of vestments, all belonging to the congregation.”  And, for the rectory, he noted in part: “6 beds, 2 wash tables, set of red plush parlor furniture and 2 hanging lamps.”             I will just list the names and dates of Sacred succeeding Pastors:  1906-1915 Fr. Edward Meegan; 1915-1921 Fr. John T. Cox; 1921-1923 Fr. Vincent De Paul Archambeault (one of two Frenchmen); 1923-1959 Fr. Philip J. J. Dwyer; 1959-1964 Fr. Richard Walsh; 1964-1969 Fr. Francis Hoar; 1969-1984 Fr. Laurence Connaughton; 1984-1992 Fr. Charles Gaffigan; 1992-1995 Fr. William Gorman; 1995 to the Present, well, you know the rest of the story (the second Frenchman)…Sacred Heart Parish was served by two Assistant Pastors:  1957 Fr. Harvey Thompson and 1957-1958 Fr. Gerald Millett.             Which brings me to my third point: The People or to use the words of St. Peter in our second reading the LIVING STONES, which is all of you…and your parents and their parents before them.  For the without the Living Stones this would be an empty building.  From the Parish Pastoral Council, to the choir, from the Catechists and DRE to the Book keeper and grounds keeper, from the ushers and greeters to the Altar Severs and Music Ministers, from the Lectors and Eucharistic Ministers to the Sunday School children to the Pine Haven Residents and home-bound, and from the church decorators to the church cleaners and linen launderers you have built yourselves into a spiritual house with Jesus Christ as your cornerstone.              So many wonderful things have happened here in this Parish of Sacred Heart from 1882 to 2002…the growth, the building the remodeling, the activities, the fund raisers, the wedding receptions, and the like.  But one thing that has remained constant and center to the life of this parish is the celebration of the Eucharist.              Yes, indeed, it is the Mass, the Eucharist, that “makes” us the People of God and the living stones that we are.  It shapes us into the community of Christ.  Here the risen Lord is gloriously present.  Here Christ Himself speaks to us when Old and New Testaments are proclaimed.  Here Christ rests on our hand and on our tongue, making us a temple of God.  Here is the Bread of Life—a food that paradoxically is not changed into us; we are changed into Christ.  And here my dear people, each Sunday the recessional sends us back into the world to feed the hungry and slake the thirsty, to clothe the naked and welcome the stranger, to visit the lonely on a hospital bed or behind bars.             Here, in the Eucharistic liturgy, you and I re-present the most remarkable love history has ever experienced; a love whose source is the Heart of the One who is called the Christ.  And you and all your loved ones before you have reflected the love the Sacred Heart so well.  And so, on this Jubilee in the name of all the Pastors and Priests mentioned above I say THANK YOU!             The last words tonight will not be mine but from one of our dear Living Stones and official parish poet, Pat Near.  This is the poem that Pat wrote in 1982 when Sacred Heart celebrated the 100th anniversary of the founding of the parish. “Two hundred years ago, a Kinderhook statesman was born. He was Martin Van Buren. One hundred years ago, a Philmont edifice was established. It was Sacred Heart. And, we ask, what comprises a hundred years?   It is love and joy, happiness, life. Sadness, tears, and sometimes strife. It’s people working for common causes, A world of rushing, and, oft times, pauses.   It’s a church, a priest, a hall, a steeple, With untold help from many people. Lectors, altar boys, organists all And Parish Committees for church and hall.   Ushers, teachers, organization, Extraordinary ministers offering oblations. It’s a youth group, a choir, with voices so trill… Or a peaceful cemetery over the hill.   Baptismal fonts and candles galore, Laymen uniting as never before. It’s Altar-Rosary and Holy Name, Or a Confirmation when Bishop came.   A joyous birth, a funeral sad, A wedding reception ‘tween lass and lad. A first Communion, or final vows, And life hereafter when time allows.   The lilies, poinsettias, the crib so dear, The Rectory’s warmth, the church halls so clear, Such blessings untold, from finish to start Make a Special Centennial                                       For our dear Sacred Heart. Top Church of the Holy Cross   (Note: This history was compiled from a treasury of photo’s, newspaper articles, letters and other historical items stored in a scrap book donated by Joseph and Mary Ann Pulice. We gratefully acknowledge the many unnamed Holy Cross parishioners who contributed items to this scrap book. If you have more facts that can be added to this history, especially the early days before Lake Taghkanic, please contact Deacon Warren.) The Church of the Holy Cross was in West Taghkanic, New York near the intersection of the Taconic State Parkway and State Route 82 in Columbia County. The church building was located not far from the Lake Taghkanic State Park, a popular summer camping and day use area. It was the needs of vacationing Catholics that encouraged the growth of the parish. But there are records of Sacraments that date back to 1927, when local people, many of them farmers, were already a part of a Catholic community worshiping in people’s homes who knew themselves to be the "Church of the Holy Cross." On April 9, 1953, Father Thomas K. Scott, pastor of the Church of the Resurrection in Germantown wrote to the Taconic State Park Commission and requested to use a building known as "The Seven Sisters," a former bar, for Sunday Mass beginning on the last Sunday in June until the second Sunday in September. Permission was granted in a letter dated June 25, 1953 just in time for the summer season. There was no rental fee and the first summer was a great success as was the following two summers. Quickly, this seasonal mission church was also used by local residents who had to travel many miles to the parent church in Germantown, Saint Mary’s in Hudson, Sacred Heart in Philmont or Saint Bridget’s in Copake Falls. Another date important to the history of Holy Cross Church is January 8, 1926. That is when a new Grange Hall was dedicated on Route 82 in the Town of Taghkanic. Thirty years later, on June 30, 1956, Father C. Bernard Alford, then the current pastor of Resurrection Church, presided at the first Mass in the mission Church of the Holy Cross in the building converted from the Grange Hall. The following priests concelebrated: John Tracy (Albany), Caleb Vaughan (Stuyvesant Falls), Thomas Lenahan (Dean of Columbia County), Joseph Hennessy (former pastor), Joseph Blonkowski (Hudson) John Taffe (Stottville), Vincent Gorski, Joseph Connolly (Carmelite Convent), Thomas Scott (former pastor), James T. Kane (Tivoli), and Almerico Di Cerbo. On February 10, 1960, a press release written by Wilma Kozlowski, Secretary of the Holy Cross Society, was published in the Albany Times Union announcing a major renovation of the church by A. Testa & Sons of Hillsdale. Changes included a steeple with a donated carillon, new front entrance, extension of the building to include the sacristy, and other interior renovations. Stained glass windows were on order. In 1992, the basement hall was refurbished to include a modern new kitchen. The Church of the Holy Cross remained a mission of Resurrection Church in Germantown until June 28, 1970 when it officially became an independent parish whose first pastor was Father Peter V. Kranch. Born on July 9, 1924 in Lawrence, Mass, Fr. Kranch was ordained at Saint Procopius Abbey, Lisle, Illinois on May 19, 1951 and came to his new parish assignment from St. Ambrose in Unadilla, New York. For many years, he lived in a mobile home at the Alvarez Mobile Home Park until the Parish House was built in 1974 on land donated by Wilhelmine Ihlenburg. It was Father Kranch’s dream to build a dedicated church building on the property and therefore he started a building fund. Father Kranch faithfully served his rural community well past retirement age until October, 1998, when declining health forced him to leave his beloved parish family. After a brief hospitalization, he resided at and continued priestly ministry at the Teresian House in Albany until his death on November 12, 2001. Father Kranch lives on in our hearts and in the Father Peter V. Kranch ‘42 endowment established by bequest from his estate at Catholic Central High School which provides tuition assistance for qualified students demonstrating financial need. When Father Kranch was hospitalized, Father Peter Russo (Pastor of St. Bridget’s in Copake Falls) was assigned as the Administrator of the Parish with Father Raymond J. Ethier assisting him as a Sacramental Minister. In December of 1998, Jacquelyn (Jackie) Jefferson was appointed as the Pastoral Associate for Administration to be a "Pastoral Presence" on site, since there was now no Priest in residence. In February of 1999, Father Peter Russo was installed as the Pastor. On July 18, 1999, Father Ray, who was already the pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Philmont, was appointed as the pastor of Holy Cross Church. He held this position, with Jacky Jefferson as the Pastoral Associate, until the parish was officially suppressed and the community combined with the people of Sacred Heart to form the new parish of Saint John Vianney officially dedicated at a Mass presided at by Bishop Howard Hubbard on August 28, 2005. Fr. Ray, Fr. Carl Johnson, a native son, and Fr. Peter Chepitis, concelebrated, and Deacon Warren assisted. Also assisting was Rev Jack Wilder, Pastor of St Thomas Evangelical Lutheran Church, where we now shared worship space with his community. At that dedication, our Pastor, Fr. Raymond J Ethier, our Deacon, Warren Dorsch, and our Pastoral Associate, Jackie Jefferson, were commissioned by our Bishop as the Pastoral Team of the newly formed Parish. Our Parish has come a long way, and under the continuing guidance of the Holy Spirit will journey forward being formed into the Body of Christ, being built into the Kingdom of God! For a detailed history of the early years of the Holy Cross Community of Faith, click here. Top Saint John Vianney   An unfolding story.   Top