St Gerard's Church and Monastery facts for kids
Quick facts for kids St Gerard's Church and Monastery |
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St Gerard's Church and Monastery in 2008
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| General information | |
| Architectural style | Gothic revival |
| Town or city | 73–75 Hawker Street, Mount Victoria, Wellington |
| Country | New Zealand |
| Coordinates | 41°17′31″S 174°47′27″E / 41.291962°S 174.790784°E |
| Construction started | Church: 1908 Monastery: 1931 |
| Design and construction | |
| Architect | Church: John Sydney Swan Monastery: Frederick de Jersey Clere |
| Designated: | 5 April 1984 |
| Reference #: | 226 and 227 |
St Gerard's Church and Monastery are two very special buildings in Wellington, New Zealand. They stand proudly on Mount Victoria and are easy to spot from many places around the city. These buildings are so important that they are officially listed as "Category 1 Historic Places." This means they have a lot of history and cultural value.
The land where the church and monastery now stand used to belong to a man named James Edward Fitzgerald. Some people even say he was New Zealand's first Prime Minister! In April 2021, the group that owned the buildings, called the International Catholic Programme of Evangelisation (ICPE), announced that the church would close. This was because of safety worries. The buildings were then sold on March 27, 2023, to a new company called St Gerard's Limited.
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The Church Building
The church was built in 1908. It was designed by John Swan for a group of Catholic priests and brothers called the Redemptorists. This church was the very first in the world to be named after Gerard Majella, an Italian saint from their order, after he became a saint.
The church has a simple Gothic design and is made of brick. It can hold about 200 people. One of the most amazing things about the church is its beautiful stained glass windows. These windows were made by Hardman and Son in England, and the company thought they were the best they had ever sent overseas! John Swan also designed the stunning marble altar. It is made of green and white marble and has Italian mosaics showing the Annunciation, which is a famous scene from the Bible.
Who Was St Gerard?
Because this church was the first to be dedicated to Gerard Majella, it received a special gift from Pope Pius X. This gift was a large oil painting of St Gerard. The painting was created in Rome for St Gerard's beatification (an important step before becoming a saint) in 1893. Later, in 1904, when he officially became a saint, the painting was carried in a parade through Rome and displayed in St Peter's.
The Monastery Building
The monastery was finished in 1932. Money for its construction came from donations from the public. This three-story building was built to be a home for the Redemptorist priests and brothers. The foundation stone was laid by Archbishop Redwood, and the building was officially opened on April 10, 1932.
Frederick de Jersey Clere is usually given credit as the architect for the monastery. It is made of strong concrete with brick walls. It has Gothic-style windows and red-brick arches for its cloisters (covered walkways), which are placed to catch the sun. The Wellington City Council has even bought land near the monastery to make sure that its amazing view over Oriental Bay is never blocked by other buildings.
The Redemptorists in New Zealand
The Redemptorists first came to Wellington in 1882. From 1908 until the monastery was built in 1932, they lived in the old Fitzgerald house on the same site. For 56 years, from 1932 to 1988, St Gerard's Monastery was the main place for their work in New Zealand.
They traveled around the country, giving talks and leading special church services. At St Gerard's itself, they held regular prayer sessions and other religious activities. They also had groups for men and women. A special service they offered was always having a priest ready for anyone who wanted to talk or confess anonymously. The monastery also had a fantastic choir that was heard on the radio starting in 1927.
In 1988, after 80 years, the Redemptorists decided to sell the buildings. This was because the buildings were expensive to keep up, and they had fewer members. They also moved the special St Gerard painting.
The ICPE Mission
In 1992, a group called the Institute for World Evangelisation - ICPE Mission bought the complex. This group is a Catholic association that uses the buildings as a place for retreats and training for missionaries. A community of people lived there and ran the center. The church continued to hold public Mass every Sunday.
The ICPE community started in Malta in 1985. They used St Gerard's as a base to share their faith. They held "Schools of Mission" where young people from many countries came for a five-month program. This program taught them about their faith and ended with a month of "missionary outreach" where they helped others. ICPE missionaries also worked in churches around New Zealand. They ran programs in schools and helped people in need, like working at a soup kitchen for the homeless. They also worked with prisoners and youth groups.
In 2020 and 2021, the ICPE could not run their missionary school because of travel rules during the COVID-19 pandemic. At the same time, they found it hard to get enough money to make the buildings safe from earthquakes. The church had to close, and the last public Mass was held on May 23, 2021, 113 years after the church first opened. After 30 years, the ICPE Mission decided to sell the buildings because they could not raise the millions of dollars needed for earthquake strengthening. The complex was sold on March 27, 2023.
Before leaving St Gerard's, the ICPE Mission thought about their future in Wellington. About 20 community members had settled in Wellington over the years. These members decided to stay and continue their work by meeting monthly in each other's homes.
The ICPE also donated the altar from the main church to the Metropolitan Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. The Catholic Archbishop of Wellington, Paul Martin, was very happy that such an important part of St Gerard's history would be kept in the cathedral. A large statue of the Sacred Heart of Jesus was also given to the cathedral. The ICPE community also gave furniture to other community groups, like Kahungungu Whānau Services and the Salvation Army.
St Gerard's Limited
The complex was bought on March 27, 2023, for just under $5 million New Zealand dollars by St Gerard's Limited. The director of this company is Sean David Kelly. The previous owners had estimated that making the buildings safe from earthquakes would cost around $20 million New Zealand dollars.
See also
- Redemptorists of Australia and New Zealand
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington
- Sacred Heart Cathedral, Wellington
- St Joseph's Church, Mt Victoria
- St Mary of the Angels, Wellington
- Catholic Church in New Zealand
