New Church in Town:
Our Lady of the Angels
By Sandy Vondrasek

The interior of the new Catholic Church in Randolph, the first one to be built since 1993. (Herald / Tim Calabro)

In a 90-minute service infused with both the solemnity of ancient church ritual and the palpable excitement of a new adventure, Our Lady of the Angels Parish was formally consecrated and held its first mass Sunday in Randolph. Close to 500 people attended.

The handsome and beautifully-appointed church opened after years of planning, fundraising, and several delays, and at the conclusion of 10 months of construction. The new 10,000-square-foot replaces the 100-year-old year Sts. Donatian & Rogatian Catholic Church in Randolph village.

Our Lady of the Angels is the first new Catholic church to be built in Vermont since 1992, and Sunday’s event drew both parish members and supporters from across Vermont, and beyond.

All those folks were temporarily squeezed into the new church’s parish hall at 10 a.m. Sunday morning, waiting for Bishop Matano and Fr. John Milanese, pastor of Randolph’s Catholic parish, to lead the procession down the long hallway between the hall and the spacious and high-ceilinged church.

Elements such as a vaulted ceiling that rises 20 feet high, pale peach walls, selected artwork, and light from skylights at the main entryway transformed the hallway into a handsome space in its own right.

The assembly slowly moved into the church, to a brass fanfare composed for the occasion by Dr. William Tortolano.

According to Fr. Milanese, the new church seats 270. However, thanks to folding chairs and the generous aisles around the pews, the big crowd was largely accommodated, with only a few folks standing. A handful of others—including a contingency of the Knights of Columbus in full regalia, retreated to the parish hall to watch the proceedings on a television screen set up next to the room’s blazing gas fireplace.

Early in the service, in his homily, the bishop emphasized that he was there not to dedicate a building, but rather "to dedicate a church meant to be kept alive by its people."

What will make the church notable, he said, was not its "museum" quality, but the vitality of its community.

Consecration Ceremony

Sunday’s worshippers—plus the healthy contingency of news media on hand for the event—were guided through the long consecration ceremony with the aid of a 24-page program. As the service continued, with prayers, readings, and responsive chants led by a cantor, the crowd had ample time to take in the design of the interior space.

Details include a series of graduated arches that embellish the wall area behind the altar, stained glass windows from the old Sts. D&R, and newly commissioned artwork. The latter includes a large reproduction of a painting, Our Lady of the Angels, by 19^th-century French painter William Bouguereau, which hangs behind the altar. It was one of several pieces specially commissioned for the new church, according to Fr. Milanese.

The consecration culminated in a series of quiet rituals, which began with Bishop Matano anointing the altar with chrism, or consecrated oil. He then proceeded around the periphery of the nave, "signing" with the oil each of the six, small crosses mounted on the walls.

"The anointing of the church signifies before all else that it is given over entirely and perpetually to Christian worship," the program noted.

Returning to the altar, Bishop Matano placed incense into a censer, and after "incensing" the altar, proceeded again around the church nave, swinging the ornate censer, "incensing the people and the walls."

The mostly solemn tone of the first part of the ceremony turned brighter—literally and physically—thereafter. Until that point, the church had been illuminated only by window light. As the consecration portion of the service came to an end, candles were lit and the suspended cylindrical light fixtures overhead turned on, to the lilting music of a harp.

The service moved into its final phase, with communion, prayers, and music, accompanied by the brass ensemble.

The celebration continued in a more informal fashion with a catered reception in the parish hall.

"It’s just all overwhelming; it’s a dream that’s been in the making for so long," said church member Linda Gaidys.

David Goldsworthy said the morning’s service had been his first look at the new church, which had been finished in a flurry of activity in recent weeks.

That activity included moving pews and the white marble statue of "the assumption of the Blessed Mother" that stood in front of Sts. D&R, to the new church.

Goldsworthy, like others at the Sunday’s events, confessed to being "blown away" by the combination of the consecration ceremony and its special music, and the impressive new building.

Attention to Detail

Several members, including James Kirkpatrick, parish council president, credited "Father John," for his loving attention to the details of the project construction.

"I see his signature, his attention to detail, everywhere," said Kirkpatrick, adding that he felt the sum of those details imbues the new church with a feeling of "reverence and majesty."

One of the special places in the new building is a small chapel—Sts. Donatian & Rogatian Chapel—that incorporates stained glass windows from the original 1867 Sts. D&R, which was built on the site of the present—and now vacant—church on South Pleasant Street.

Another detail in the building is a "donor tree," a piece of high-relief wall art acknowledging major donors to the new church project.

One of the prominent names is the Brassard family, with a number of donations received in memory of Joyce Brassard, who died last spring.

"She would have loved this church," Denise Brassard Sanborn said of her mother, during Sunday’s reception.

Milanese worked with several architects on the design evolution over several years. The final design, based on a footprint developed by David Shelpler of East Randolph, was by GVV Architects of Burlington. Contractor was Neagly & Chase, also of Burlington.

Open House

This week, Fr. Milanese, noted this week that space constraints made it impossible to invite the community to Sunday’s consecration. Thus, he said, the church will open its doors to the wider community in coming weeks.

The public is invited to a March 2 open house and concert, featuring music by the Sounding Joy! chorus, Milanese said.. Other programs are planned, including a May concert with Dr. Tortolano.

"We plan to throw open the doors and welcome the community," said Fr. Milanese of the March 2 event. "I hope everyone will come to see the building and enjoy the concert.

More information about Our Lady of the Angels, including photographs from Sunday’s events, are at the church’s website, www.ourladyoftheangels.info.

Funds Yet To Be Raised

For the parish and pastor of Our Lady of the Angels, this week’s excitement stands against a backdrop of a very serious issue: Money.

Despite long and ardent fundraising efforts by church members spanning several years, only about half of the funds for the $1.5-million church are in hand. Fr. Milanese said this week that the church has just formalized a $694,000 loan on an $800,000 line of credit from Chittenden Bank.

In 2006, when Bishop Matano authorized the church to go ahead with the project, a $300,000 deficit was "presumed." That estimated debt was based on an anticipated $1.4-million cost, and the sale of the Sts. D&R church and rectory. However, the real estate market slowed, and both buildings still have "For Sale" signs out front.

Also, several late-in-the-project additions added another $100,000 to the project cost.

However, Milanese said parish members plan to continue their energetic pattern of fundraisers: A series of dinners benefiting the building fund is already planned, starting with "a parade of casseroles" dinner this Sunday night.

And, there is clearly an unspoken hope that the larger, handsome, and readily accessible church will draw new or lapsed members into the fold.

In his homily, Bishop Matano noted that a sign of a truly vibrant church would be one with blazing lights and a full parking lot, day and night.

Fr. Milanese noted that he saw many at Sunday’s service who had attended church only once or twice in the past. A number of the folks who stepped forward to help with the move, he added, "hadn’t been going to church in the longest time."

The church has about 120 active families, and another 100 or so "member families," Milanese told The Herald in a 2007 interview.

Nor is anyone mentioning a study done three years ago, under the aegis of Matano’s predecessor, Bishop Angell.

That study, prompted by a shortage of priests, recommended, among other things, that "Bethel and Randolph be yoked, with one pastor," according to Fr. Milanese.

Milanese said this week he has not received any communications from the diocese about possible church closures, and is not aware of any plans to do so.

If such a change were undertaken, he added, it would likely take some time, as the Bethel and Randolph churches are in different deaneries.

"It would involve a reconfiguration of deaneries," he said.