Since 2019, Église Sainte-Marie in Church Point, Nova Scotia, has been inactive and allegedly faces demolition or might be sold. However, the church will be spared by the generosity of an unknown individual who will reportedly cover the $10 million worth of repairs and ongoing maintenance, consequently making the church operational again.
Saving the Church in Nova Scotia
For the past nine years, the organization has been trying to rescue the Église Sainte-Marie in Church Point by pleading with the community and the three tiers of government to donate the necessary money to make the required repairs, Yahoo News reported.
As mentioned, the president of Société Édifice Sainte-Marie de La Pointe, Pierre Comeau, said, "What we were trying to do was to save it as a structure and a monument to our ancestors whose ingenuity and perseverance have built this magnificent structure. But it would not have been a church." However, they were unable to raise sufficient funds. A couple of months ago, it was decided that the building either needed to be torn down or put up for sale.
Luckily, Comeau announced that an unknown donor has offered to pay for the repairs and ongoing maintenance of the renowned landmark, estimated to cost ten million dollars. There is, however, a condition. It must be a functioning church again, which has not been operating since 2019.
Moreover, it seems as though the prayers of the people working to save the Église Sainte-Marie at Church Point, Nova Scotia, may have been heard. "It's a fabulous offer, and the group that we're with, we're tickled pink," he added.
CBC News reported Comeau stated that the organization would be holding a public meeting the following weekend in the Saint-Alphonse Church to discuss the Église Sainte-Marie's future.
He claimed the region would have too many churches if the structure became operational again. It is reportedly possible that some others will no longer function as active churches, adding that nuances must be sorted out later.
Comeau also noted that he and the Archdiocese of Halifax-Yarmouth agree with the potential contributor. He has high hopes that the repair work will get underway this summer.
Also Read:Lilly Endowment Inc. Gave $3 Million Grant for Reconstruction of Historic First Baptist Church in Williamsburg
Construction of Église Sainte-Marie in Church Point
Canada's Historic Places stated that the Sainte-Marie Church completed its construction in 1905, with local master carpenter Léo Melanson as the project's supervisor. The church was built according to the designs of French architect Auguste Regneault. Melanson built several other churches in the area out of wood frames, and Pope Pius XII presented him with a medal in 1944 for his work on Sainte Marie.
Accordingly, Father Pierre-Marie Dagnaud, a member of the Eudist Order and the local priest at the time, is mainly responsible for the building's construction. The local Catholic community, the descendants of the Acadian families who landed in the area in 1769 from Massachusetts, commissioned the construction of this church, which marks the third church to be built on the site to satisfy their religious needs. These families survived the Deportation of 1755 and eventually made their way back to Nova Scotia on foot. This group of displaced Acadians resettled in the Church Point region since they could not return to their original houses since they had either been burned down or occupied by English-speaking settlers.
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