St. Anthony’s Church – Alagollawa

St. Anthony’s Church is a Roman Catholic Church situated in the Anuradhapura Diocese of Sri Lanka. It holds a significant place as one of the Calvary shrines within the diocese. The Church is nestled in the picturesque village of Alagollawa, near the enchanting Ritigala mountain range. Notably, Calvary’s summit holds both beauty and added significance.

This Church was maintained by priests from the Anuradhapura diocese for many years until it was given over to the Congregation of the Blessed Sacrament for Eucharistic ministry in 2006, at the invitation of its bishop, Rt. Rev. Dr. Norbert Andradi, OMI. It was our fourth parish foundation in Sri Lanka. We are grateful to the Lord for all the graces and opportunities for ministries received through the foundation of Alagollawa parish since September 8th, 2006, the project which was initiated under the aegis of Rev. Fr. Nilindra Gunasekera, SSS, the Provincial Superior then. This Church was rebuilt during our time, and 14 stations with statues were put on the Calvary grounds. Ritigala Calvary became a popular pilgrimage site for Catholics during the Blessed Sacrament’s seventeen-year mission, drawing devotees from various places during Lent.

On April 21, 2023, the foundation was transferred from us to the diocesan clergy during a Eucharistic ceremony presided over by His Lordship Rt. Rev. Dr. Norbert Andradi, OMI. We thank him sincerely for his friendship and support over the years of our presence in his Diocese. Fr. Roger Fernando SSS (2006 – 2011), Fr. Mahendra SSS (2011 – 2012), Fr. Samantha Senanayake SSS (2013 – 2017), Fr. Emil Indika SSS (2018 – 2019), Fr. Sajeewa De Silva SSS (2019), Fr. Anscar Wijerathna SSS (2019 – 2022), and Fr. Aruna Atthanayake SSS (2023) were the religious who served as parish priests from 2005 to 2023. Frs. Samantha Senanayake, Priyantha Angodage, Jude Fernando, Anscar Wijerathna, Hashendra Perera, Emil Indika, Anthony Marcus, Samitha Navoda, and Oliver Julian have also served as members of the parish community over the years.

Faithful to the mission entrusted to us by our gifted predecessors, both diocesan and religious, we have tried our best to improve the standard of the Church from both spiritual and material perspectives. We thank God for all of the graces He bestowed on the Church and the faithful.