Most Holy Trinity Catholic Church is
located in Angleton, TX. It is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese
of Galveston-Houston. It is the fourth church to serve the Roman
Catholics of Angleton. In November of 1931 Sacred Heart Church,
located just north of Anchor Road near Front Street was dedicated.
Prior to that, Catholics met in private homes and halls and some
went to Danbury where a resident priest was established. The joy of
having Sacred Heart proved to be short-lived however as the
structure was destroyed in a 1932 storm, less than one year after
construction. Angleton Catholics waited almost 12 years before a
priest and church were to be established again when in 1944 Fr.
Raphael O’Loughlin came to Angleton from Rosenberg. After receiving
formal invitations from the local Hispanic community, Fr. O’loughlin
eventually took up residence and became the parish priest of the
Church of St. Thomas Aquinas located on South Erskine, a mission
church of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Rosenberg. Being bilingual, Fr. O’loughlin served Spanish and English speaking residents very well.
The parish of St. Basil was canonicaly erected in August 1957 three
years after the land was purchased. The cornerstone of St. Basil
was laid in September 1959 by Father John Collins. O’Loughlin
became pastor of St. Basil and was also responsible for the mission
church of St. Thomas.
In Palm Sunday April 16, 2000 a new
era for the Angleton Catholic Community began as it held its first
mass in a new and beautiful facility, which was constructed after the
merging of St. Thomas parish, which had served the Hispanic community
of Angleton and St. Basil parish. New friendships abound and
occasions of fellowship are a weekly occurrence with the holy mass
and activities that surround our Sundays together, as well as our
weekly activities.
The shield of the Basilian Fathers has the logo “Teach me Goodness,
Discipline, and Knowledge” written in Latin. The shield also
depicts a chalice, the symbol of the priesthood; a book of the
Gospels, symbol of the Christian faith; a Greek cross symbolizing
the redemptive death of our Savior Jesus Christ and St. Basil, who
was a Father of the Greek church; and the fleur de lis (lily) which
is a symbol of France and the origin of the Basilian Congregation in
France. At the bottom is 1822, the date on which the Basilian
Congregation was officially approved by Rome.
