St Anne Church
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St. Anne Church history can be trace back since 1833, when there is some
Chinese and Indian Catholic followers from Batu Kawan settled in the foothills
of Bukit Mertajam. There are actually peasants who had came to clear the land
for cultivation.
St Anne Church was started by French missionaries from the Paris Foreign Mission
Society that started their missionary work in the Far East as early as the 17th
century. The chapel was name St. Anne because she was the most popular among the
French missionaries.
St. Anne is highly regarded as mother of Mary, the virgin who give birth to
Jesus Christ. Many believe that St. Anne was borned around 50 B.C in either
Nazareth or Bethlehem.
Catholics believer observe her feast day on 26th July every year. It is known
between 1840 to 1860, the first church to be built in Bukit Mertajam was on top
of the hill. Today, the site of that small chapel is the 15th and final station
of the Cross which devotees make in their pilgrimage.
A bigger chapel was built in 1865 to accommodate the congregation that is
growing bigger day after day. It is built just behind the wall of taps of St.
Anne water. As the water is filtered by the soil, this spring water is cleaner
and healthier than the tap water.
The historic St. Anne old church was built in 1888 under the leadership of Fr
F.P Sorin. He later died in 1907 and was buried at the entrance of the Church.
This Church which is now named "Shrine of St Anne" is the main spot to celebrate
the feast of St. Anne every year.
In the aftermath of the Second World War in 1948, communist activities
threatened the political stability of the then Malaya. The grounds of the church
were deemed a prohibited area due to communist activities in the surrounding
hills. Fearful that the Chinese community in Bukit Mertajam would be sympathetic
to the Communist movement, the British Government relocated them to new
villages.
The Old Church, located in a "black area", where Communist activities were
regarded as strong, became a prohibited area. As the results of this, all church
service was conducted at the Convent a distance away. A church building was
later erected to serve the relocated congregation and served through out the
"Emergency" period for 48 years.
In 1977, Fr Peter Pang became the Parish priest of St Anne's church. He started
the move back to the ground of the Old Church, building an altar shed in front
of the Old Church.
Further restoration was carried out, including the reinstallation of the stained
glass and the church bell - there were originally two, but one of them was lost
during the Japanese Occupation.
St Anne Church Feast that draw hundreds of thousand of pilgrims annually is
nothing short of amazement. The large crowd that came to the feast is the
testament that St Anne Church is no doubt one of the amazing discoveries in
Penang.
Contact Information
St. Anne Sanctuary Bukit Mertajam
Jalan Kulim
14000 Bukit Mertajam
Penang
Tel: 604 538 6405
Fax: 604 538 7422
Opening hours: 7 days a week. The 9 days annual St Anne Church Feast will be
held on the last week of July.
Admission: Free
Getting There
St Anne Church is located in a town at the mainland called Bukit Mertajam. It's
about 40 ~ 45 minute drive if you come Georgetown. Taxi or buses are available
to bring you here.
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