First Mass In New Church

It remained now, for the “finishing touches” to be put on the interior of the church.  The decorators move swiftly and in early Spring it was announced that the church would be completed for Easter Sunday, April 10, 1966.  Archbishop Boland delegated Rt. Rev. Monsignor John J. Cain, Pastor of St. Bartholomew’s Church in Scotch Plains, to consecrate the altar at 9:00 am on April 2^nd, the day before Palm Sunday.  After the consecration of the altar, the first Mass was celebrated in the church.  Father Drexler selected Palm Sunday as the first day for regularly scheduled Masses to be celebrated.  All of the Holy Week services were held in the church culminating in the Easter Vigil service at midnight on Holy Saturday.  By this time, the formal dedication date, September 24, 1966, had also been set by the Archbishop.

Landscaping of the church grounds was completed, and the first day of May saw the First Communion class receive Holy Communion in the Church.  The conferring of the Sacrament of confirmation tool place, appropriately, on Pentecost Sunday May 29^th, with Most Rev. Joseph A. Costello officiating.  Early in June, the imported white marble statue of Our Lady of Lourdes and the Kneeling Bernadette were place in the courtyard, outside the parish hall.  On June 17, 1966, the first graduating class of Holy Spirit School, consisting of 25 children, matriculated.