Blessing of grotto marks the end of parish’s celebrations

An historic grotto which was once located in the Loreto Convent on Brook Street in Omagh has now been relocated to the grounds of St Mary’s Church in Drumragh.

The relocation of the Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto was the final part of celebrations marking the 125th anniversary of the Sacred Heart Church and coincided with the visit of Archbishop Luis Mariano Montemayor, who is the Papal Nuncio to Ireland, to the area. It also marked the historic anniversary of 260 years for St Mary’s, which is the oldest church in continuous use in the Derry Diocese.

The Our Lady of Lourdes Grotto has been a source of prayer for many students at the Loreto, and will now be available for anyone visiting St Mary’s Church. The Apostolic Nuncio and Bishop Donal McKeown of Derry met with Sr Anne O’Toole to bless the grotto. Parish Priest of Drumragh, Fr Eugene Hasson, thanked the Papal Nuncio for coming to Omagh.

A direct representative of Pope Francis, the Apostolic Nuncio serves as the Vatican’s ambassador to Ireland, fostering relations between the Holy See and the Irish Church.

Archbishop Montemayor, a seasoned diplomat originally from Argentina, has served in various countries, including the Democratic Republic of Congo and Senegal, before his appointment to Ireland in 2021.

Fr Hasson joked that it was now the task of Archbishop Montemayor to encourage Pope Francis to come to the town and ‘see what he is missing’. In response, the Papal Nuncio said that it was due to Fr Hasson’s perserverance that he had finally been able to make the trip to Tyrone.

The visit to Omagh came on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception and was also marked by the re-publication of the book ‘Five Years Tour in America’ which was first published in 1906 and has now been re-published.

It was written by Fr John McGlade, a curate in the parish of Drumragh at the time that his uncle, Monsignor Bernard Mc-Namee, was Parish Priest. Very few of the original books now exist. But the newly re-published edition has been specially prepared and printed for the anniversary.

Copies are available from the Drumragh Parish office on Brook Street at a cost of £25.