St. James Chapel
“…you are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God. You form a building which rises on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the capstone.”
(Ephesians 2: 19-20)
In 1889, during the reign of Bishop Cleary, the Diocese of Kingston was elevated to the rank of Archdiocese and Metropolitan See by Leo XIII. To commemorate this event, the new Archbishop built St James’ Chapel, of which the cornerstone was laid in 1890.
The eight stone sculptures round the interior walls depict the first six bishops of Kingston, and Popes Leo XII who made Kingston a diocese and Leo XIII who made it an archdiocese. The Chapel has recently been renovated, using the original wall, colouring that was found under the old paint. The gold leaf round each window was also restored, with the use of a stencil made from the original gold~leaf design. The stained glass windows were made in Germany and date from about 1910. They depict mainly Saints and the Holy Family.
The Chapel is in use daily for the Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament. It is also used for the early morning and evening weekday Masses, smaller weddings and funerals, and special services and prayer meetings. Before the building of Our Lady of Fatima Church, it served as the spiritual home of the Portugese congregation, and now serves a similar function for Polish and Spanish Catholic communities.
The Chapel has its own organ, a two manual and pedal electronic instrument by Allen, donated in 1994 in memory of the then Organist’s wife.
