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Brought to you from the forthcoming book by renowned historian
Dr. Lennox Honychurch.
Roman Catholic Church ()
Since the arrival of Columbus, the Roman Catholic Church has had an important influence on Dominica. The island was named for Sunday, the day on which it was sighted, 'Dies Dominica': The Day of The Lord. Latin hymns of praise starting with 'Salve Regina' were sung off its coast in thanksgiving. But little direct impact of the church was made for the next 150 years until French missionaries of the Dominican Order led by Fr. Raymond Breton began a mission among the Caribs. He said the first Mass at Vieille Case in 1646 and built the first church at Colihaut in 1653. Franciscans and Capuchines came later but had no lasting impact. It was with French colonization that the RC church was firmly established under the Jesuits at Grand Bay and by Fr. Martel at Roseau, who built the first church there in 1730. The RC mission under slavery followed the directives of the French Code Noir, whereby the enslaved were to be instructed in the faith and participate in the Mass and other ceremonies of the church, unlike the early Protestant attitude which forbade participation. On the capture of Dominica by the British, the Crown allowed the RC to continue as before, but Catholics wishing to participate in government and hold official posts had to take certain oaths denying aspects of their faith. This practice was abolished with Catholic Emancipation in 1829. In 1764 ten acres of Roseau had been granted on lease to the RC church and then was given in freehold in 1864, which it still holds. Great expansion of the church occurred after full Emancipation in 1838 particularly from 1850 when Roseau was established as a diocese. Under the first bishops, Monaghan, Vesque and especially Poirier, parishes were established and the first large rural churches constructed. Religious orders from France (FMI) and later Belgium (Redemptorists) came to serve all over Dominica. In 1857 the first nuns arrived to begin a school for girls and an orphanage. During the 20th century church building continued, schools at Pointe Michel and Portsmouth were established, the St. Mary's Academy and later SMP, provided education for boys. Nuns moved into providing health and welfare services. The Credit Union movement initiated by Sister Alicia has become the equivalent of a national banking service. The ordination of local religious effectively began in the mid-century and has produced two Dominican bishops, Bishop Bowers and Archbishop Felix. The effects of Vatican II from the 1960s and the introduction of the Charismatic Movement from the 1970s, the effect of the US-influenced fundamentalists on membership, the need for vocations to support the church and the increased dependence on lay people are some of the features of the church at the beginning of the 21st century.
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