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A forgotten ruin, now on the seaward side of the clubhouse of the Royal Belfast Golf Club provided inspiration in the mid 19th century for the building of Glencraig Parish Church. Known as Cragger the ruin had been the outpost of a nearby monastic settlement from the 12th century but had fallen into disuse over the intervening centuries. Yet it was to be that in a few hundred yards of this site a new church would spring up to serve the needs of the local community. The history of the church begins in 1856 with the vision of Mary Symes who handed over the land for the construction of the church. Two years later the church was consecrated and in many ways has maintained its original character while the environment and social framework around have been subject to change, especially since the end of the Second World War. In those years the rural setting of the church has been transformed through the building of nearby housing and the establishment of the separate parish of Helen's Bay, which until the early 1960's had been the daughter church of Glencraig. Over the years Glencraig has been blessed with a succession of devoted and exceptional pastors and the church's history is a record of their achievement. A
detailed history of the Parish can be found in the book "Still Other
Seed" (£5.00 plus post and packaging). A photograph of historical interest can be found here. |
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