Long Tower donates £1,400 to Cathedral

Published Date: Derry Journal 08 September 2009
By Staff reporter
Long Tower Church parishioners have donated more than £1,400 to St Columb's Cathedral.
The collection was taken up two weeks ago following the burning of a picture of a seventeenth century Church of Ireland Bishop on a bonfire in the Bogside.

The administrator of St Columba’s Church, Long Tower, Fr Roland Colhoun, said the collectio was a gesture of goodwill to their neighbours.

Fr Colhoun said: “As members of the Long Tower Parish, we wish to show consideration to our neighbours in the locality and in the faith. We are, therefore, donating the second collection of last Sunday’s Masses for this good cause.

“It is with kindness of spirit that we give it this week to St Columb’s Cathedral for the restoration of the portrait.

“In particular, we would like to acknowledge the benevolence of the gentleman in the portrait, the Church of Ireland Bishop of two centuries past. As Earl of Bristol he was a most egalitarian man, supporting the faith of his Catholic neighbours and contributing substantially to the building of the 1812 Long Tower Church. The Bishop donated 200 guineas, a sum that would amount to over £40,000 by today’s estimates.

“In light of his generosity to us and our solidarity with his successors in the faith, we offer our Sunday’s second collection as a gesture of goodwill. With extra donations included from schools and people outside the parish, it comes to £1,403,” he said.