Saint Joseph's Church, Bukit Timah

Saint Joseph's Church (Chinese: 聖若瑟堂) is a Roman Catholic church in Singapore. It is located at Upper Bukit Timah Road along the boundary of the Bukit Panjang and Bukit Batok planning areas, within the Northern District of Singapore. Saint Joseph's is the second oldest church in Singapore, after the Cathedral of the Good Shepherd. Saint Joseph's is also the last remaining Catholic church to feature a cemetery.

History

Kranji Chapel (1845 – 1900) 
In December 1845, Father Anatole Mauduit made his way to Singapore in search of Chinese Christians who were labouring away in plantations. 

In 1846, he founded a Mission Station near the Kranji River, which was known back then as the Kranji Chapel, where he erected a small attap chapel.

By 1853, his congregation had grown so large that he had to build a new chapel – Saint Joseph's Church, at the present site.

Many would make their way to the parish every Saint Joseph's Feast Day to celebrate, this devotion to Saint Joseph's soon started after the arrival of the statue of the saint, Saint Joseph, in 1861.

Relocation (1900 – 1950) 
Christians of Saint Joseph's faced multiple problems such as, secret societies, tigers, plantation failures, and a dwindling congregation.

In the 1910s, the parish priests decided to plant a rubber plantation around the church and this helped to bring Christians back to the district.

By the 1930s, Saint Joseph's Church had become a pilgrimage destination for Christians of Malaya (now known as Malaysia) and Singapore. 
After the war, many families settled in the districts around the church, this was also the Baby Boom generation.

Rebuilding (1951 – 2000) 
When Father Joachim Teng became the padre of Saint Joseph's in the 1950s, he tackled the overpopulation at the parish by beginning the process of rebuilding the church with no resources.

One way that Father Teng raised the money needed to rebuild the church, was by organising a food and fun fair at the parish every Feast Day, since then, it has become a church tradition. Fr Teng also reared cattle within the church's compound to produce milk which he then sold for income.Father Teng finally completed the new Saint Joseph's Church in the early 1960s. 

Saint Joseph's was blessed on 30 August 1964 by Archbishop Michel Olçomendy.

In 1991, the parish installed life-sized Stations of the Cross around the church's boundary – these edifices have since become an important part of the parish's devotional traditions.

In 1995, the parish’s columbarium was opened and blessed by Archbishop Gregory Yong, this was followed by the building of a new parish hall in 1997.

During the Season of Lent, Catholics from all over Singapore would make a pilgrimage to the church to journey along these Stations.

The parish would also organize Feast Day Processions that follow the Way of the Cross.

Saint Joseph's Church, Bukit Timah (2001 – present) 
On 1 May 2012, Archbishop Nicholas Chia consecrated the church.

In the last few years, the parish has added a few more pilgrimage locations within the church compound. The parish's Rosary Garden is another life-sized pilgrimage and devotion trail that was blessed on 25 March 2017 by then-Archbishop William Goh. Father Mauduit's headstone is also located in the garden.

Architecture 
Saint Joseph's Church was rebuilt by Father Joachim Teng in the 1950s to accommodate the larger congregation size and the new design also showcases the church's Chinese heritage.

See also 

 Archdiocese of Singapore
 Roman Catholicism in Singapore

References

Further reading

External links 
 Saint Joseph's Church (Bukit Timah) official website
 Singapore Catholic Church Directory

Churches in Singapore
1845 establishments in Singapore
Roman Catholic church buildings in Asia
Bukit Panjang
Bukit Batok
Churches completed in 1853