Cutting from 'The Cape Argus', 2 July 1932, referring to the newly-built Redemptorist Retreat House at Heathfield in Cape Town, South Africa. A manuscript annotation reads: ‘Cost £4,000’.
A religious sister (probably from the Sisters of the Holy Cross) with children, probably from a parish school or orphanage in Cape Province, South Africa.
Report of the Canonical Visitation in South Africa by Fr. James O’Mahony OFM Cap., Provincial Minister, St. Bonaventure’s Friary, Cork. With a copy cover letter addressed to Fr. Clement Neubauer OFM Cap., Minister General. The report on missionary activity in South Africa is arranged under the following headings: Introduction and History of the Mission Athlone: Parish of St. Mary of the Angels a. Spiritual Matters and Horarium b. Material Matters – Friary, Church and Schools c. Financial Matters Langa: Saint Louis Mission Station and Church of St. Anthony of Padua a. Spiritual Matters b. Material Matters – Church and Schools c. Financial Matters Welcome Estate: St. Therese Catholic Mission a. Spiritual Matters b. Material Matters Parow: Church of the Immaculate Conception a. Spiritual Matters b. Material Matters – Church and Schools c. Financial Matters Matroosfontein a. Spiritual Matters b. Material Matters c. Financial Matters Conclusion The report includes statistical forms re the personnel of the Cape Town mission. There is a synopsis of Fr. O’Mahony’s interview with Bishop John Colburn Garner (1907-1993), Vicar Apostolic of Pretoria, re the prospects of developing the Capuchin Mission in the Cape Province.
Report by Fr. Timothy Phelim O’Shea OFM Cap., Regular Superior, on missionary work in the Cape Province, South Africa. The report asses the work of the Irish Capuchin friars in Parow parish (Fr. Oliver O’Hanlon OFM Cap. and Fr. Casimir Butler OFM Cap.); Matroosfontein (Fr. Marcellus O’Carroll OFM Cap.); Athlone (Fr. Terence Anglin OFM Cap. 1900-1947); the Welcome Estate (Fr. Damascene McKenna OFM Cap., 1913-1967); Langa (Fr. Christopher Crowley OFM Cap.).
Report on the prospects of the South African mission by Fr. Edward Walsh OFM Cap. and Fr. Canice Bourke OFM Cap., St. Mary’s, Cape Town for Fr. Kevin Moynihan OFM Cap., Provincial Minister. The report refers to a meeting with Bishop Bernard Cornelius O’Riley, Vicar Apostolic of the Cape of Good Hope, to discuss the areas (Athlone and Parow) which have been offered to the Irish Capuchins. A description of both districts and their populations is given. The financing of the proposed mission is also referred to. The report notes that ‘there is a well-disposed Catholic in Athlone, a Mr. Murphy, who came to the Cape during the Boer War, and settled here’. The report also affirms that ‘the people seem to want us badly in Athlone – there certainly is a hunger for a priest there’.
A pastoral report on Parow Parish, Cape Province, South Africa, compiled by Fr. Didacus McGrath OFM Cap. (1929-2018). The report refers to the three areas within the parish: Tiervlei (Tyger Valley), Parow and Elsies River. The report notes that ‘in the parish, taken as a whole, the proportion of Coloured to White is 2 to 1. It can scarcely be classed a “White” Parish. We use the term “White” and “Coloured” with no intention of approving a situation. The Churches in Parow and Tiervlei are almost certainly the only Churches with mixed attendance in the area’.
Report by Fr. Didacus McGrath OFM Cap. (1929-2018), Regular Superior, on the Irish Capuchin mission in Cape Town, South Africa. Fr. Didacus notes that ‘thirteen priests and two brothers are responsible for the twenty thousand Catholics in the Cape Town Archdiocese’. The report is divided into the following sections: • Apostolate • Vocations • Finance • Present debts of the Parish • Life of the friars • Needs
