WISCONSIN DELLS — On May 26, St. Cecilia Parish in Wisconsin Dells proudly welcomed and blessed its new and restored bells and installed them in the newly constructed bell-tower.
There were three bells — two new bells and the bell that hung in the old church.
The new bells were cast in the Netherlands by the Verdin Bell Company.
The old bell dates back to the 1902 church and was restored by the same company.
Pastor Fr. Eric Sternberg, blessed the bells according to the rite and tradition of the Church.
Dedicated to a saint
In keeping with ancient tradition, each of the bells was dedicated to a patron saint.
The old bell was already dedicated to St. Cecilia.
The two new bells were dedicated to St. Michael the Archangel and to St. Felix, pope and martyr.
These saints were chosen because they are also the patrons of the two previous pastors of St. Cecilia Parish — Fr. Michael Richel and Msgr. Felix Oehrlein, both of whom passed on to the Lord before the building project was completed.
These bells will ring out the joy and hopes, griefs and sorrows of the good people of the Dells and will call all who visit the Dells to the house of God for prayer.
The bells are housed in the newly built bell-tower which, when completed, will stand 91 feet tall and is destined to become a beautiful landmark of the Dells area.
Building project
The blessing of the bells was the next step in the building of the new St. Cecilia Church, which is scheduled to be dedicated on Sunday, Aug. 28.
The old church building was razed last summer to make way for the new church expected to hold more than 1,000 people.
For more information on the new church project, go to www.dellscatholic.com