The world celebrated the 1400th anniversary of the birth of Columbkill of Iona in 1921. This great evangelizer and lover of Sacred Scripture was a "natural" as a patron saint for a new parish to be established in Boyertown, Pennsylvania on June 9, 1921. Established by Father Creemers and Dennis Cardinal Dougherty, the territory was taken from Most Blessed Sacrament Parish, Bally, and Saint Aloysius Parish, Pottstown to form this new parish.

The first Pastor of the Parish was to be Father Bernard J. Creemers. Father Creemers was a native of Holland and a missionary to the Philippines with Cardinal Dougherty. When Cardinal Dougherty was made the Archbishop of Philadelphia he invited Father Creemers to spend time in Boyertown recuperating from a severe accident. Father remained here as our Pastor for 45 years!

Original Church
In 1921 a large home was purchased at 35 Chestnut Street. This served as the church for the parish with just 12 members until 1968. It was also the Rectory for the Pastor until 1971. The building underwent several renovations during that time. Certainly humble beginnings, but the people persevered and were genuinely proud of their Parish.

By 1953 the original church proved to be too small and a major addition was made to the building to hold about 200 people. Stained glass was added to the building at that time.

Dedication
Father Creemers died in 1966 and was succeeded by Father David B. Morrison. Father Morrison obtained our present property that year and plans were developed for a new church to accommodate our 180 families. The new church, which held 400 people, was opened in 1967, dedicated by Bishop Joseph McShea, the Bishop of the new Diocese of Allentown.  Father Auchtor

In 1970 Father John Auchter succeeded Father Morrison. In 1971 Father Auchter built our present rectory and the property on Chestnut Street was sold to the Boyertown Area Historical Society.

Father Richard J. Ford was appointed our Pastor in 1972. During Father’s pastorate, our Parish societies and spiritual renewal movement flourished. Marriage Encounter and the Charismatic Renewal were introduced into the Parish, with many of our 500 families being involved. Father Ford is a fine musician and sponsored the Boyertown Arts Festival in our buildings.

In December 1986 Father Robert C. Quinn was appointed Pastor. Our Parish continued to grow  Father Quinn quickly and steadily. A Building Committee, headed by Dale Brumbach, was established, resulting in the birth of the Father Bernard Creemers Parish Center in 1990. This new center provided space for the Religious Education Program that enrolled 800 children weekly. In 1997, the 75th Anniversary of the Parish, we began in earnest plans to construct our new church. Construction began in May of  2000. With 1700 families, this new church was a necessity at the time and heading into the future. Our new church seats 700 people and can be expanded in the future to hold 900. Bishop Edward P. Cullen, Bishop of Allentown, consecrated the new church on April 23rd, 2001.


In June 2009 Father Martin F. Kern was appointed Pastor to replace Father Robert C. Quinn, who retired after 23 years of service to our parish.  Fr. Marty was transferred to Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Bethlehem in June of 2021 after 12 years of service to our parish.


In June of 2021 Father Richard Clement was appointed pastor to replace Fr. Marty Kern.  Fr. Rich and Our Parish Council spearhead over seventy different ministries and activities in our Parish and we seek to provide spiritual nourishment to our parish families.


Who is St. Columbkill
One of the frequently asked questions of new people coming to our Parish is: Who is Saint Columbkill? The proper Irish spelling of his name is Columcille. He was born in 521 in Gartan, County Donegal, Ireland. He was baptized Crimthain, which means “Wolf”, but his youthful visiting of a neighboring chapel earned him the nickname of Columcille, meaning “dove of the Church”. Columcille was a poet and bard, but he decided to join the priesthood. So he began his studies for the priesthood and after his ordination, he gathered together more young priests and established a monastery near Derry. This was the first of 36 monasteries he was to establish.

At 42 he left Ireland after a severe dispute with King O’Neill. He sailed to Scotland and landed at the island of Iona where he established a monastery with other Irish monks. That monastery is still in operation today after 1400 years. He brought Christianity to Scotland and is known as the Evangelizer of the Scots. Columcille had a great devotion to Sacred Scripture and to the sharing of the Faith with other people. It may have been Columcille personally (or one of his monks) who transcribed the Bible in what has been known as the Book of Kells, one of the greatest and most beautiful of the early Bibles. Columcille died 1400 years ago in 597 at the Monastery of Iona. His body was brought back to Ireland and buried next to St. Patrick and St. Brigid at Armagh in Northern Ireland. He is one of the three principal saints of Ireland.

Monks of Columcille’s monastery at Iona went out to the people of France and northern Europe and brought the Christian Faith to these areas.

Columcille’s monasteries became centers of great learning and the beginning of the academies and universities of Europe. Columcille’s influence was significant not only in the history of the Church but the history of the whole European continent.

As the patron of our Parish, we draw from him his tremendous love of the Word of God in the Bible and his genuine concern for spreading the Faith. His life is depicted on the Tabernacle of our church.