History

Holy Savior Catholic Church

    In the early 1900s there were few Catholics in the town of Clinton.  Those that resided in Clinton attended Sunday Mass in Jackson. 

    With the establishment of St. Mary's Parish in west Jackson, Clinton Catholics began attending Mass in the new church on Claiborne Ave.  Some of the Clinton residents  also enrolled their children in St. Mary's school located adjacent to the Church. By the early 1960s the city of Clinton had grown considerably and so had the Catholic population. 

    The Catholics in Clinton, being of sufficient numbers and desiring a church of their own, petitioned for the formation of a Catholic Parish in the town of Clinton.  After studying the request, Bishop Gerow established the Parish of Holy Savior in Clinton on August 12, 1966.  Father George Uricheck was appointed the founding pastor. The first Mass in the new parish was held in the upper room of the Student Union Building at Mississippi College. Within two months the parish family members numbered 45.

     The Immaculate Conception Mission Church in Raymond became the host church for the new Holy Savior parishioners. Two Masses were offered on Sundays, one at 8:00AM and one at 10:30 AM.  Religious education was conducted immediately after the 8:00AM service.

     In September of 1967 property  was purchased at the corner of Old Vicksburg Road and Lindale Street in Clinton.  A triple-wide trailer, donated by the Extension Society and placed on the property,  became the first Catholic Church in Clinton.  The following month Bishop Gerow dedicated the church. He was assisted by Bishop Brunini and Father Patrick Farrell.

     In its first years of existence the parish continued to grow.  During these years a choir was formed and the first CYO was organized as were other church affiliated organizations.

     To provide for continuing growth,  land adjoining the church property was purchased in 1968.  To the disappointment of the parishioners, in that same year, Father Uricheck was reassigned from Holy Savior to a parish  in Virginia. His departure left Holy Savior Parish with no permanent pastor. Visiting priests celebrated Mass until the appointment of Father Marion Spadini  as pastor at the end of the sixties.

      With the assignment of Father Spadini the parish once again had a full time pastor. Following his appointment  the first parish council was elected. Under Father Spadini's guidance a building committee was appointed and they begin making plans for a new church building. Several months later, following  Bishop  Brunini's approval, construction was started on the  first permanent church in Holy Savior Parish.  It was in November 1976, the parish's tenth anniversary, that Bishop Joseph Brunini dedicated the new church. The building, a multiple purpose structure, was used to celebrate Mass, conduct religious education classes and provide space for social functions. It presently serves as an activities center for the parish.

    The year 1980 brought about more changes in the parish.  Father Spadini left  for an extended sabbatical and  Father Martin Ruane was appointed the third pastor of Holy Savior Parish. 

     The rectory which was included in the earlier property acquisition was in disrepair and work on the remodeling of that building was started when Father Ruane arrived.   In addition,  the house adjacent to the rectory was purchased for use as  educational class rooms.  It was later renovated and a second class room structure was built immediately behind it. These class room facilities were desperately needed to accommodate religious education for the growing number of children in the parish. As Father Ruane remarked: "Our parish is a young parish, weak in funerals and strong in baptisms."

     During Father Ruane's tenure, the parish experienced extensive growth.  The RCIA program which he conducted  resulted in many converts and a return to the Church  by a number of Catholics who had drifted from their faith.

     By 1984 parish leaders had identified a definite need for a new Church.  The parishioners wanted a church building solely for the purpose of worship in an atmosphere conducive to the celebration of the Eucharist and other religious services.  Father Ruane appointed a building

committee and  in 1985 plans were initiated to build a new church on the north east corner of the church property.

     Following nearly two years of planning and construction a new church was dedicated in 1987 by Bishop William Houck. The magnificent structure is the pride of every parishioner at Holy Savior.  It was designed to seat 750 people with the pews positioned for excellent viewing from any seat in the church.  As demanded by Father Ruane, the aisles are wide and pews are comfortable!  Finally, the people of Holy Savior had a building where they could worship in reverence.

     In accordance with diocesan rules Father Ruane left Holy Savior Parish for a new assignment in 1991.  His parishioners as well as his non Catholic friends were saddened by his departure.  He had worked hard to mitigate the barriers  between Catholics and non-Catholics in Clinton. 

     Father Noel Prendergast followed as the fourth pastor and the second native Irish priest  of Holy Savior Parish.  During the later years of  his assignment,  He proposed

the construction of a new building which would house all  religious education class rooms  and parish offices. At the time of this proposal the classrooms were scattered over three different buildings and the parish office was located in the rectory.  The master plan called for  demolishing the old education buildings and the rectory .The new combined facility would then be built in the cleared area.  Following approval by Bishop Houck, a new rectory was purchased and the education building project was started.  During the construction stage of the new building a trailer placed in the church parking lot was used as a temporary parish office. The new building was completed and dedicated by Bishop Houck at the end of 2002.  In January of 2003, Father Prendergast was reassigned.  He had served longer than any previous pastor at Holy Savior Parish.  His many friends  expressed their appreciation for his loyal  dedicated service as pastor at Holy Savior Parish.             

    With the departure of Father Prendergast, Father Thomas Mc Ging, assumed the duties as pastor of Holy Savior Church.

     In July of 2004 termites destroyed  portions of the two primary laminated beams that support the roof of the church.  An inspection by a structural engineer revealed that the building was unsafe and  had to  be vacated until mandatory structural repairs were completed. These repairs entailed a  major restoration of the entire church structure.  The restoration work took almost fifteen months  to  complete.  On October 17, 2004 Bishop Joseph Latino celebrated Mass and rededicated  the church. During the restoration period Mass and other services were held in the parish center.

     The parish continues to grow. In the year 2004 the number of registered families was about 350.

     Church affiliated organizations within the parish  include: A  Catholic Youth Organization, Knights of Columbus Council No. 7854 and its associated Ladies Auxiliary, The Golden Oldies (a senior citizens social group), the  Altar Society and Boy Scouts.  Religious education is taught at all levels and a nursery is provided for infants and small children during Sunday Masses. See the Services Page on this site for scheduled services.