North Carolina Parish Moves into New Church Building

The new Blessed Sacrament Parish in Burlington, North Carolina

Some time ago, Blessed Sacrament Parish in Burlington, North Carolina realized that it needed a new church building to hold all the faithful people who came to Mass. The old church building with its 450 seats just was not sufficient anymore.

It took about a decade of prayer, work, and planning, but on June 5 of this year the Blessed Sacrament community held a dedication ceremony for its newly built church. Bishop Michael F. Burbidge performed the ceremony with several Franciscan Friars including Blessed Sacrament pastor Friar Robert Benko and Friars Justin Biase and James McCurry. Friar Justin is Minister Provincial of the Franciscans’ Immaculate Conception Province while Friar James fills the same ministry but for St. Anthony of Padua Province.

The dedication Mass at Blessed Sacrament

Nearly 2,000 people came to the new Blessed Sacrament for the building’s dedication ceremony and Mass. They filled up every single seat, 200 extra chairs, and the interior area. The ceremony was full of symbolic acts like the passing of the church key from Bishop Burbidge to Friar Benko who then opened the building and with it a new chapter in Blessed Sacrament Parish’s history.

(Source of all related images on homepage and webpage: Conventual Franciscans.)