The Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Boho

Image: © Eric Jones Taken: 24 Jul 2012

Situated in the townland of Toneel North, this one of the few Catholic chapels in Ireland to stand on land which was in constant use for Christian worship from the days of the early Celtic Church to the Reformation. After the Reformation such sites came into the ownership of the Protestant Church of Ireland, but because the Boho area attracted few Protestant planters the pre-Reformation church was allowed to become dilapidated while the local population worship surreptitiously at Mass stones in the area. When the Church of Ireland church was built in the late 1799s, some its stones were used in that building. With the relaxation of the Penal Laws the Catholics were drawn back to the old site and a new church built there for the sum of £20. This was replaced by the present building in 1913. The church is said to have been founded by the sixth century St Faber. In 2018, the shortage of priests led to masses being celebrated here only every other Sunday. https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-45929249

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