Church of Saints Peter and Paul, Singapore
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Church of Saints Peter and Paul | |
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Archdiocese of Singapore | |
Designated | 10 February 2003 |
Reference no. | 49 |
The Church of Saints Peter and Paul (
History and architecture
The history of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul is closely linked with the beginning and growth of the Chinese Catholic community in Singapore. The church, with its tower, was constructed between 1869 and 1870. It was erected by the Chinese Catholic
Initially, the Chinese Catholic community had contributed to the building of the first permanent Roman Catholic house of worship along
With the development of the apostolate among the Chinese and the Indians under Father Pierre Paris, it became increasingly difficult to accommodate the different linguistic groups in the cathedral. By the late 1860s, a new church was needed and the Church of Saints Peter and Paul was erected. It is said that the cost of the compound wall of the church was defrayed by
From 1891 to 1892, the church was enlarged when the sacristy and transept were added. Father Vignol also erected three marble altars whereby the High Altar in the new sanctuary was consecrated by Bishop Edouard Gasnier. From 1910 to 1911, the church was further extended with the enlargement of the choir loft, construction of the entrance porch and the extension of the façade with the help of contributions from wealthy Chinese parishioners such as Mr Low Gek Seng, a manager of the Bangkok and Singapore-based merchant firm Kiam Hoa Heng. These altars (including the high altar) no longer exist, as they were demolished in the renovations of 1970, which came in the period of confusion following the Second Vatican Council, where many well-meaning church members and clergy oversaw the unnecessary 'modernisation' with beautiful buildings scarred.
In 1910, the
A major renovation of the church was planned for its centenary year and in October 1969, with the help of the Church Renovation Committee, the parishioners and other well-wishers, renovations were completed in time for the Centenary Celebrations in June and July 1970. It was during this major renovation that the original neo-gothic high altar was demolished, and replaced with a modern 'communion table' style altar, similar to what one would find in a Protestant church, without a reredos, and no visually obvious crucifix or candles, with the stained glass windows becoming the visual focal point instead. (these issues were addressed in the most recent restoration when the 1969 wreckovation was mostly undone.)
There was once a
The parish of the Church of Saints Peter and Paul grew marginally in the 1970s but began to decline since the 1980s when schools within its vicinity were relocated. With the completion of new churches in the various housing estates and the demarcation of parish boundaries, many parishioners have since left for their new parishes located nearer to their homes.
The Church of Saints Peter and Paul was
Currently, the church is under the care of the
Most recently, the church underwent a major renovation and restoration, which was completed in 2016. Apart from addressing necessary repairs to the fabric, the renovation also reinstated several features of the original church, such as ornate encaustic tiles, similar to the ones removed in the late 1960s. Besides repairing the aging roof structure and other technical improvements such as lighting and air conditioning, many of the unsympathetic changes introduced in the 1970s renovation were reversed: the modern sheet metal vertical window louvres were replaced with traditional wooden louvred windows, the badly-planned gallery at the west end was removed, and a high altar, similar to the one that was demolished, has been purchased and re-installed at the east end. Additional joinery screens were added to the east wall, and an altar rail was reintroduced. Following this renovation, the church became the recipient of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Singapore's Architectural heritage award in 2016.[2]
See also
- Saint Peter
- Saint Paul of Tarsus
- Christianity in Singapore
- Roman Catholicism in Singapore
- Archdiocese of Singapore
- List of Roman Catholic churches in Singapore
References
- ^ "Queen Street church to be preserved". eresources.nlb.gov.sg. The Straits Times. 11 February 2003. p. 4. Retrieved 7 November 2022 – via NewspaperSG.
- ^ "About Architectural Heritage Awards". 31 December 2016. Archived from the original on 31 December 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2022.
Bibliography:
- Norman Edwards, Peter Keys (1988), Singapore – A Guide to Buildings, Streets, Places, Times Books International, ISBN 9971-65-231-5
- Eugene Wijeysingha (2006), Going Forth... – The Catholic Church in Singapore 1819–2004, Titular Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore, ISBN 981-05-5703-5
- Wan Meng Hao (2005), Know Our Monuments [1], Preservation of Monuments Board