St. Mary’s Church, Grand Street, Negombo
In the heart of the city of Negombo, along its Main Street, fairly close to the western coast of Sri Lanka, stands an elegant and majestic building of splendid grandeur, popularly known as “St. Mary’s Grand Street”. The foundation stone for this church was laid on 4th June 1874 and the completer church was consecrated on 7th July 1907. For 135 years this church has been a house of prayer, reflection and devotion to generations of Negombians bringing them to the feet of Jesus and His Mother in their trials and tribulations, in good times and in bad times and has been the centre and the focus in their journey through life.
Historically, the church Catholic Faith flourished particularly along the western coast of Sri Lanka, especially among the fishing community, since the coming of the Portuguese in 1505 that is nearly 500 years ago. It is on record that a church dedicated to the Blessed Virgin, existed very close to the Portuguese fort of Negombo and that it was under the Franciscan Missionaries. When this church became too old, a new church was built in 1603. The location of this second church was probably the site presently occupied by the Divisional Secretariat of Negombo. In 1656, with the coming of the Dutch, Catholics were persecuted in various ways. Churches and places of public of public worship were burnt down. It is said that the Dutch destroyed the church in Negombo and turned its premises into a Dutch cemetery which now is the site of the Divisional Secretariat.
In 1806, under British rule, Governor Thomas Maidand lifted all sanctions imposed against the Catholics. In 1814, on representations made to the Governor by the Catholics for a piece of land to build a church, the present site was handed over to Fr. Joseph Priyas, on Ortorian priest and a third church was built. Very soon this church was found to be too small to serve the growing population and in 1848 under Fr. Emalio Milinai, a fourth church 145 feet by 35 feet was built.
The statue of the Miraculous Madonna, carved out in wood, was the main statue of these churches and the focus of Marian devotion. When the Dutch destroyed the second church the devotees removed this statue and hid it. And it was brought back when the third church was built. Today, this statue adorns the altar on the right wing of the church of St. Mary’s.
Monsignor J. B. Vistarini the Apostle of Negombo
On the left said of the facade of St. Mary’s Church, Grand Street, Negombo stands a life-size sculpture of a majestic stature but with a charming and angelic face and at the base of this monument are these words.
Thus, the parishioners of St. Mary’s Church and the people of Negombo have immortalized the memory of a beloved pastor who served them in the 19th century for almost four decades and left behind a legacy of not only a beautiful church but also undying memories of shining example of a loving and dedicated priest in the vineyard of the Lord.
John Vistarini was born on 1st September 1817 to an aristocratic family in the province of Lombardia in Italy. It was the religious fervor of his father and mother and their love that brought young Vistarini closer to the Lord and with the blessing of his parents he answered the call the priestly vocation and entered the seminary in 1833, and was ordained a priest on 14th June 1840 by the Bishop of Lombardia.
Father Vistarini’s first assignment was to serve in a hospital in Naples for mentallu retarded patients. Working with patience and dedication but under the most trying circumstances, sometimes beaten and attacked by those whom he served, Father Vistarini began to suffer from a severe nervous ailment. When confronted with the possibility that he may never recover from this disorder, it is said that he made a vow to the Divine that if he recovers he would sell half his wealth and give to the poor and dedicate his life to serve in the missions overseas anywhere in the world. God spared his life and Father Vistarini set about fulfilling his vow. He informed the Propagada Fide in Rome, the institute that deals with missionary work in foreign lands, his willingness to serve in any part of the world.
Thus Fr. Vistarini with two other priest set sail for Sri Lanka from Naples on 26th August 1846 and reached here on 7th December 1846. The three priests were first posted to server in Jaffna and Fr. Vistarini became an assistant parish priest in the Valikamam District. Here he began work in earnest tending to the needs of the faithful. He learned Tamil, travelled far and wide in the region on foot in the unbearable heat of the northern sky and came to be known as “Sammanas Swami”, the angelic priest.
After the death of Bishop Batnini, Bishop of Jaffna, Fr. Vistarini asked to be transferred to Colombo and thus in 1857 he found himself placed in charge of the parish of St. Mary’s Church, Grand Street, Negombo and also to look after eighteen other churches in the region with about 20,000 Catholics. From then on Fr. Vistarini never looked back. For an unbroken period of 38 years he served the people of Negombo with total commitment to his priestly vocation.
Fr. Vistarini’s life was like a many sided gem, the beauty of which can be admired by looking at it from different angles. Firstly, a successful priestly life begins with personal sanctification, closeness to the Lord through constant prayer, penance, reflection and meditation. It is said that Fr. Vistarini practiced the holiness that he preached to others so fervently that the people were instinctively drawn to him attracted by his holiness and his life of prayer.
He appears to have generated a profound religious fervor among his flock. The church records of the parish indicate that it was in his time that the Corpus Christi celebrations, devotions to the Sacred Heart, Blessed Virgin, St. Joseph, the month of May devotions and societies such as the later the walls began to rise together with the massive pillars with the personal contributions of Fr. Vistarini and donations from abroad. When Fr. Vistarini passed away in 1895, his dream Church was incomplete and his last rites were performed inside the incomplete church.
Time moves on
Fr. Grio succeeded as parish priest and recommenced building operations in 1897. Beginning with a small balance of Rs. 2400 he was able to collect Rs. 62,456 to carry on the work.
In 1900 Fr. Brough took over. It was in his time that the dome of the church above the altar was struck by lightning and was damaged. The people of Negombo were appalled and grief-stricken and wept for their beloved church. It is said that the people were s moved with sorrow that they brought the Deeds of their properties and their jewelry and gave them to the priest to use them to find the money to re-build the dome Fr. Brough was deeply moved by the loyalty of the people and he obtained a loan of Rs. 36,880 and with device of Fr. Assau repaired the damages at a cost of Rs. 41,366.
In 1907 Fr. Masson succeeded in reducing the debt. In his time, wealthy and respected citizens of Negombo undertook to finance various constructions of the church. Gate Mudaliyar W. M. Rajapakse donated the altars in the left and right wings of the church. Mr. John H. Perera, donated a set of four church bells in memory of his parents. Mr. Leo de Croos donated the marble altar and the altar rails surrounding it.
The church was now almost complete and the 32 years old dream of the people of Negombo for a beautiful church in their city was finally realized when on 7th July 1907. His Lordship Anthony Coudert the Archbishop of Colombo consecrated the church.
The Milliner era
Fr. J. Milliner O.M.I was appointed parish priest in 1911. He was a lover of art, efficient and farseeing. The bells donated by Mr. John H. Perera and imported from France were installed of in his time. On 7th September 1911, these bells were blessed by. His Lordship Henry Julan Bishop of Jaffna and installed in the right side of the church. The distinct and melodious sounds of the bells of St. Mary’s can be heard far and wide in the city of Negombo and his continued to call the people to prayer and devotion daily for the last nine decades.
Fr. Milliner worked to chance the beauty and majesty of the church. He imported from France at a cost of Rs. 2500 a set of statues depicting the coronation of Our Lady and wanted to install it at the rear and above the altar. This was met with opposition from the people, 467 of whom petitioned the Archbishop. It was their view that the old wooden statue of the Miraculous Madonna should remain above the altar. However, saner counselprevailed when it was pointed out that the new coronation set would enhance the beauty and majesty of the church and the altar and would add glamour to the church. The old statue was moved to the side altar in a wing.
Fr. Milliner also took steps to import from Europe several statues of popular saints and have them installed on each of the pillars of the church. Mr. John H. Perera at this time also donated the marble Baptismal Font. The people of Negombo wanted to remember their beloved priest Fr. Vistarini in a special way and so a life-size figure of Fr. Vistarini was made in Europe and installed in front of the church. On 20th August 1915, this monument wa declared open by Sir Robert Ames the Governor of Ceylon.
The Church beautiful 
In 1941 Fr. Sebastian Fernando took a major step in adding a meaningful beauty in the church. The rood of the church was provided with a semi-circular ceiling at a cost of Rs. 2,500.000 following the original plan of Fr. Assau. He then commissioned a loval artist. Mr. N.S.Godamanne to paint large and colorful paintings depicting various scenes from the Holy Scriptures. To the artist this was not easy taks and never had he und
ertaken a task of this nature and magnitude, for lying down in a sleeping position on a high scaffolding, like the great Michael Angelo, he created great works of art which to this day are the pride of the church of St. Mary’s for no other church in this country could boast of so many murals on its walls.
Today, after 125 years, St. Mary’s Church of Negombo stands as a steadfast monument to the undying devotion of the people of Negombo to the Faith of their fathers, a testimony of their trust, confidence and love for the Mother of Jesus and a masterpiece of art and architecture for the greater glory of God, our Father, Church committee, the Sacred Heart Society, the Sodality of Our Lady and Fishermen’s Society were started.
His contribution to the construction of St. Mary’s Church, Grand Street, Negombo is one of the finest and the most beautiful churches in Sri Lanka.
Fr. Vistarini was also a great social leader and innovator. He
knew the need to uplift the condition of the poor fishermen of this parish. He formed Fishermen’s Societies and encouraged the saving habit out of the savings of their daily income. These savings were used to set up a Fund to assist fishermen is distress or in times when they would not be able to go out to sea.
His compassion for the poor fishermen was limitless. It is said that once when the catch was low for a continuous period of time, Fr. Vistarini organized a special prayer service of penitence and invoked the blessings of the Lord. At the end of the service, there was a procession to the sea shore and Fr. Vistarini himself carried the cross on his shoulders. On the beach, there was a benediction service and it is said that the period of the poor catch to end and the people were relieved
. Fr. Vistarini shared his meals with the poor and even helped poor families to give their daughters in marriage by making contributions to the dowries. To the fishermen, Fr. Vistarini was their friend, philosopher and guide. They came to him in their joys and sorrows, disputes, and quarrels and Fr. Vistarini never disappointed them.
In 1863, there was an outbreak of cholera in Negombo and it was Fr. Vistarini’s finest hour. He walked through the length and breadth of the parish, tending to the sick, providing food and medicine and burying the dead. In the far corner of the Island of Munakkara, he fixed a cross and buried the dead around it and in later years, it was this cross that gave rise to the “Kurusa Palliya”- the church of the Cross.
Another aspect of his work was his interest in education. He established a Boys Tamil School in 1858 and a Girls Tamil School in 1862. As a result of the growing interest in English education, Fr. Vistarini began an English school in a single storied building in the premises of St. Mary’s Church. Today, this great institution – St. Mary’s College, Negombo continues to renders yeoman service to the children of the parish and beyond and is one of the finest schools in the area.
The year 1890 was the Golden Jubilee year of the ordination of Fr. Vistarini. In recognition of his services to the church, the Holy Father honored Fr. Vistarini with the title of “Monsignor”. At a special ceremony held at St. Lucia’s Cathedral, Kotahena, the Bishop of Colombo awarded this title to Fr. Vistarini on behalf of the Holy Father. This occasion provided the people of Negombo a fine opportunity to show their love and appreciation to their beloved priest. It is said that Monsignor returned to Negombo after the service at the Cathedral almost in the manner of royalty, in a grand procession of hundreds of gaily decorated boats sailing along the Hamilton Canal to the rhythmic beating of drums and the lighting of crackers and that he was showered with gifts and garlands by his grateful flock.
By 1892, Monsignor Vistarini became a sick man. On 20th January 1895 he was moved to the Kotahena Cathedral for medical treatment and on 19th March 1895, he passed away peacefully to the heavens beyond and thus ended a beautiful life spent so magnificently in the service of our Lord and Master. The people of Negombo wept openly in their grief. Once again a great procession of boats was organized to bring his precious remains to the town and the people he loved. They carried his body on their commenced building.
Monsignor Vistarini is dead but the legend lives on even to this day and beyond among the people of Negombo and the fishermen. May his life and service be a shining example to the priests of today, May many like him be born to share God’s love and be witness to Him among His people!
