Holy Spirit Cathedral, Penang

Holy Spirit Cathedral is seat of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Penang, currently Rt. Rev Sebastian Francis. It is situated at Green Lane, Penang. It is a World Heritage Church (minor).^[1]

History

The parish was founded in 1958, with about 1,000 parishioners. They celebrated masses at the canteen of Convent Green Lane. After 10 years of hard work raising funds, they were ready to build the church. Construction finished in 1969 and the church was blessed by the then Bishop of Penang Diocese, Bishop Gregory Yong. In the 1990s, the parish community hall named Dewan Holy Spirit and three levels of classrooms were open.

In 2001, the church was closed for renovations to prepare for the dedication ceremony 2 years later. In 2003, the cathedral status was transferred from the former Cathedral of the Assumption to the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit. The Rite Of Dedication was held on 20 January 2003 and the new cathedral was blessed by the Bishop of Penang Diocese, Bishop Antony Selvanayagam.

In October 2007, the groundbreaking ceremony of the Church of Divine Mercy was held. The cathedral played a major role in the fundraising programs. The church, also called the Christian Community Centre, will have a main church accommodating 900 people, 15 classrooms for functions and a priests residence. It is located in Sungai Ara and caters to 2,500 parishioners living in Bayan Lepas. Previously these people had to travel to the cathedral 12 km away from the new church. The church was completed in July 2010 and the opening ceremony was held on 29 September 2010. It will be the first time in 41 years that a new Catholic church is built on Penang Island. In 1 January 2011, the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit was split to form a new parish, Church of Divine Mercy. However, the church is still administered by the cathedral.

Currently the cathedral has 2 priests, Fr. Bernard Paul (parish priest) and Fr. Anthony Liew (assistant parish priest). The cathedral has about 5,500 parishioners.

Mass Times

With effect from 1 July 2014

Daily Masses
7:00am English (Monday, Tuesday & Saturday)
6:00pm English (Thursday, Friday)

Saturday Masses
Novena to Our Mother of Perpetual Help : 5:30pm English
Sunset Mass : 6:00pm English

Sunday Masses
6:45am English
8:15am Mandarin
10:00am English
5:30pm Tamil (bi-weekly)

References

1. ↑ GCatholic.org

External links

• Official Site
• Penang Diocese Official Website

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