WOONSOCKET—If you drove by Sacred Heart Church last summer, you might not have realized that it was a Catholic Church, says its pastor, Father Ronald J. Bengford.
Outside, there is no formal church marquee displaying the parish name, Mass times, or even inspirational epigram.
But fortunately, a one-ton statue of Jesus, that shares the same name as the church, has become a billboard of sorts for the parish. The six-foot tall sculpture now stands beside the front entrance, depicting Jesus pointing to his most Sacred Heart.
The parish welcomed the newest member of the Sacred Heart family last July, an adopted statue from the former Sacred Heart Church in Pawtucket.
When local pastors requested to merge Sacred Heart Parish in Pawtucket, with Our lady of Consolation and St.?Joseph Church, the future home of the large granite statue of Jesus was uncertain.
Father Robert P. Perron, then pastor of the Pawtucket parish, offered the statue to Father Bengford, hoping to place it in the namesake parish where it could continue to draw the faithful to prayer. And it has done just that.
“Father Perron had asked me if I wanted it and said that the only thing I needed to do was move it,” Father Bengford recalled. “I was thinking, how am I going to move this big statue?”
Father Bengford reached out to the Cardi Corporation for help, and explained that they were quick to respond and generously offered the services of the company to move the statue.
“A massive crane lifted the statue,” said Father Bengford. “Mr. Cardi and his men did a great job. The following Sunday we had a nice blessing and all parishioners filed out and we blessed the statue.”
Parishioners explained that they enjoy having the beloved image as part of their church community.
When parishioner John Hewitt and his daughter attend Mass each week, they frequently comment on the statue as they walk up the steps. A parishioner of Sacred Heart for 82 years, Hewitt says the new addition highlights the parish grounds.
“We have never had a statue like that at the church,” he said. “It makes everyone passing through that busy intersection know that this is a Catholic church. I think that the statue of the Sacred Heart lends greater identity to the church since there has never been a sign out there.”
Pauline Renaud, who has been a Sacred Heart parishioner for nearly 40 years, said that the statue enhances the entrance to the church because it is visible from either entrance.
“It is beautiful,” she said. “He protects and graces our neighborhood. It is very much appreciated. People now have a feeling that it is a Catholic church.”
Father Bengford explained that the statue provides a legacy for the people of the parish and he welcomes them to pray and visit the Sacred Heart of Jesus anytime.
“The statue is now on the corner in our little neck of the woods,” he says. “It’s the Lord watching over and blessing our area. People know now that it is our church. I think it is a blessing from God that we have a statue so prominent in the front. It looks over an intersection and it’s like we are in the protection of the Sacred Heart.”
Hewitt shared that he felt uplifted to think of the collaborative efforts of the pastors and volunteers to bring the statue to its new home.
“It’s huge and it really registers with everybody as they enter or go by the church,” said Hewitt. “Everybody who passes by the area will become more certain that this is Sacred Heart parish. “I think this in effect has become our sign.”
