To the editor:
I feel compelled to respond to Steven Lindsey’s letter on March 29 regarding the demolition of Peterborough’s St. Peter Church. Mr. Lindsey writes that “[these days] the sense of community is largely gone,” and that the loss of St. Peter Church “presages something darker, more sinister.” Mr. Lindsey, while I respect your understandable mourning of the loss of a historically significant building, I strongly feel that associating the demolition to a sense of foreboding could not be further from the truth.
The razing of St. Peter Church only took place after the members of Divine Mercy Parish – a rich blending of parishioners from St. Denis Church, Harrisville; St. Patrick Church, Bennington; and St. Peter Church – had settled into our beautiful new Divine Mercy Church off Route 101. Our new home is larger and is accessible to all, offering us greater unity and a greater capacity to welcome others. Everywhere we look in our new church there are familiar, meaningful elements from the three former parishes. In addition, we have a stunning stained glass window that was a gift from our brothers and sisters at All Saints’ Church, and the kitchen in our new parish hall proudly displays a Kitchen Prayer shared with us by our brothers and sisters from Union Congregational Church.
Just like our three former churches, however, Divine Mercy Parish is way more than a building. We are all about community – our parish family growing in faith, striving to reflect the face of God to others and to see the face of God reflected in others.
Please visit us, Mr. Lindsey, and you will immediately sense our joy; our connectedness. St. Peter Church may be gone, but the members of Divine Mercy Church warmly welcome you to join us and feel enveloped in God’s love and hopefulness.
Lauren Martin
Peterborough