Saint Vincent is to have a Catholic Church named in his honour in the western Algarve.
Just over 1,700 years after his death, St Vincent remains a martyr and patron of the Algarve's diocese despite his being the patron Saint of Lisbon – and of winemakers.
On January 2th, a blessing and dedication of the new church in the Rogil community, in the parish of Aljezur, will take place at 4.30 pm, presided over by the Bishop of the Algarve, D. Manuel Quintas.
The Construction of the new church at Rogil began in 2012, with the setting of the first stone in May of that year.
The community celebrated the Eucharist for over 20 years in the hall of the local Parish Council but since October 2011, worshippers moved to an old supermarket for their Sunday service.
The church will have cost more than €250,000 and stands on land provided free in 2009 by Aljezur Council. The Council chipped in about €55,000 towards the cost and a further €15,000 for furniture.
The Parish Council, a local company and individuals have donated around €40,000 with the balance coming from the diocese.
The project has a second phase that includes a parish centre, a mortuary and a parish residence that can be built when funds permit.
St Vincent often is referred to as the ‘forgotten Saint’ with only a small statue in his honour in the Church of Nossa Senhora de Graça inside the Sagres fortress.
Perhaps Vincent's birthplace of Huesca in Spain has deterred the Portuguese from cherishing fully his martyrdom at the hands of the Romans, who tortured him in a vain attempt to force him renounce his Christian faith. He refused was executed in AD303.
St Vincent has a cape and an island named in his honour - and soon, a new Catholic Church.
An article in the Portugal Resident by Rod Frew, fills in the history: HERE
