A fresh chapter was written into a town’s history books last night with the opening of a new Roman Catholic church – its first in 500 years.

And parishioners heard that a hand-carved statue of the church’s patron saint, St Nicholas Owen, had arrived from Italy just three and a half hours before the ceremonial mass.

Father Donald Jenkinson and Mgr Frank Diamond admiring the new carved wooden figure of the martyr St Nicholas Owen

Burton Latimer’s connection with St Nicholas Owen, a sixteenth century English carpenter, started when he travelled up and down the country building priest holes.  Legend has it that he built a priest’s hiding place at Harrowden Hall, just a few miles from the new building.

The £13,000 church is the town’s first since the Renaissance period.  Mass has been celebrated in the British Legion Hall for the last 27 years.

“This church is built with the congregation close to the altar so that we maintain the emphasis on unity,” said Father D Jenkinson, parish priest for Ketteriing and surrounding areas.

The Vicar General, Mgr Frank Diamond, blessed the church at the opening last night. 

Vicar General of Northampton, Mgr F Diamond, blesses the walls

The RC Bishop of Northampton, the Rt Rev Charles Grant, was to have performed the blessing but he was taken ill.

The building has been designed to hold 100 people but there is a courtyard that can be used on fine days and which could be used for extensions in the future.  There is a smaller room for meetings.