Donnybrook Church Celebrates 150 Years..

The Church of the Sacred Heart Donnybrook

Celebrates 150 Years.. 

Photo of Church from a booklet prepared by Collette Pegum

for the 150th anniversary ..  

The 150th Anniversary Programme

Friday 26th August

7pm - Mass will be celebrated by Archbishop Diarmuid Martin as Principal Celebrant in the Church of the Sacred Heart, Donnybrook.

Saturday 27th August

2pm to 5pm  - A Family Fun Event in Herbert Park with entertainment,historical tour of the Park and games for young and not so young. Parishoners are invited with their friends to join in the afternoon, bring a picnic and enjoy the festivities.

Sunday 28th August

10:30 am - Family Mass, the Principal Celebrant will be former parish administrator Bishop Kevin Doran.

12 noon - Mass with Choir, Bishop Kevin Doran will be Principal Celebrant 

3 pm - A Journey through Christian Donnybrook wiil begin at St Marys Church of Ireland, Anglesea Road, the walk will then proceed to Donnybrook Graveyard to view the site of the earlier churches, then on by the Sisters of Charity, Maryville to Beaver Row and Beechill where the Wesleyian Methodist Chapel will be viewed externally finishing at Church of the Sacred Heart for Ecumenical Prayer Service.

Photographic and Memorabilia Display:

It is planned to have a display of photographs and memorabilia in the Church of events that have taken place there over the years.

We are appealing to Parishoners to bring items to the Parish Centre to have them copied for this display,material sought could be family events, processions, christenings, weddings associated with the Church.

Items will be carefully copied and returned to those who provide them.

On 26th August 1866 Cardinal Cullen, Archbishop of Dublin,celebrated the opening of the new Church of the Sacred Heart for the Parish of Donnybrook with a High Mass.

We are now one hundred and fifty years since that momentous event in the history of the Church and plans are well advanced for a weekend of celebrations to commemorate that day.

Join the Parish Community in coming together to celebrate our beautiful church and the history of Christian presence in Donnybrook.

The origins of that history date back to the eight century when a holy woman named Broc had a place of worship by a well close to the River Dodder . She was a follower of a Christian movement called the Cheile De.The original name of this place was Domnach Broc from which derived the present,Donnybrook .Traces of that history have been noted in Donnybrook Graveyard and so on Sunday 28th August we will be taking a Journey Through Christian Donnybrook with members of the other denominations here and beyond the district on a walkabout of the Churches and the graveyard where the original Catholic Chapel and Church of Ireland were located. 

This was the original design planned for the Church. But the spire was not finished. The tower was completed in January 1914 with turrets and parapet instead of a spire,  at a cost of £1,200. .