About Us
Our Priests
Fr Johan Wongso, SSCC
(Parish Priest)
Fr Anthony Hutjes, SSCC
(Assistant Parish Priest)
Fr Rusdi Santoso, SSCC
(Assistant Parish Priest)
Fr Karolus Kapolok Huar, SSCC
(Assistant Parish Priest)
Fr Sambodo Sru Ujianto, SSCC
(Priest-in-Residence)
Our HISTORY
Our Beginnings
Fr William van Soest and Fr Odo Tiggeloven from the Dutch province of the Congregation of the Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary (SS.CC) were sent to Singapore in 1958. At the request of Monsignor Michel Olçomendy, the Archbishop of Malacca, they came to the island to prepare, build and serve a future parish in Queenstown. Fr Van Soest was tasked with building Blessed Sacrament Church (BSC), named after the precious Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. He later became the parish priest.
In the early days, preparation and fundraising proved to be a challenge. Only a small community of Catholics existed in Queenstown and there was no central funding available for priests.
The church had to be built in stages, with Damien Hall being completed in October 1963. The hall is named after St Damien of Molokai, an SS.CC priest. It continues to be used to this day as a centre for parish activities.
1965 – Official Opening of BSC
After the priest house was completed in 1964, the main church building was officially opened to the public in 1965, marking the end of the seven-year building project. BSC was designed by Y Gordon Dowsett of Van Sitteren and Partners. With its eye-catching design, it would become an important landmark in Queenstown known for its tent-shaped blue roof and other ingenious architecture features. The church was granted conservation status in 2005 by the Urban Redevelopment Authority.
1980s – New Activities and Programmes Took Flight
As the community of Queenstown grew, the number of parishioners in BSC increased to nearly 7,000 by the 1980s. Damien Centre was built during this time and opened in 1982 to accommodate the expanding number of parish activities. One notable programme was the Parish Renewal Experience (PRE) which was first held in 1984.
2006 – Rebuilding of Damien Hall
The Damien Hall was rebuilt in 2006 and was officially opened in September 2007 by Monsignor Eugene Vaz. The brand new centre caters to the needs of various groups in the parish, including a kindergarten. Today, the space houses the Little Shepherds’ Schoolhouse which provides childcare services.
2013 – Golden Jubilee
In 2013, we celebrated the 50th anniversary of our parish with the theme “We are the Body of Christ – Mystery of Faith”. Highlights of the Golden Jubilee celebration included the Corpus Christi Mass celebrated by Archbishop William Cardinal Goh, a gala dinner, as well as a commemorative magazine and a song titled “One – in the Body of Christ”. In addition, the church organised BSC Parish Retreat 2013 and restarted the PRE.
Present Day – Tent of Meeting Restoration
The Tent of Meeting Restoration (TOMR) project was launched by parish priest Fr Johan Wongso in March 2019. More than a physical renovation of the main building, it is aimed at a spiritual restoration of the parish. The project seeks to equip the church in serving its communities, grow the parishioners’ faith and evangelise future generations.
The restoration includes work carried out on the interior of the church, such as the sacristy, roof, pews, air conditioners and sound systems. Around the church compound, sheltered walkways and drainage would be built.
The tender selection process for the building contractor was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, which also led to a 30 per cent jump in the restoration cost to $9.4 million. Several changes were made to the plan to control the increase. The archbishop, in consultation with the Archdiocesan Finance Committee, granted his approval for the project on 12 October 2021.
With the project under way, Masses were shifted to Damien Hall. The main church building is slated to reopen in the fourth quarter of 2023.