St Thomas' church (Keith)

 church, Roman Catholic church

Catholic church was built in 1830-31 as a successor to a very modest cottage and chapel which had been erected in 1785 at Kempcairn, about one km outside the town.
Situated on the Cuth Hill, or Cuthil, the highest part of the town.Saint Thomas’, which at the time had only a nave and sanctuary, is recorded as being "plain inside, with a Roman Doric exterior and a belfry".Money was raised from the UK, but mostly Ireland and France. It was opened on August 7, 1831 by Bishop James Kyle, and for 85 years this church served the needs of an increasing Catholic congregation. Stone statues of Saints Peter and Paul were added in 1837, as was the present chapel house.In 1905 Canon John Paul felt the need to enlarge the building, which seated 300. His successor, Monsignor Charles McDonald, was an energetic and forceful character, and upon his appointment in 1907 he embarked upon an ambitious plan to alter the church to the designs of Glasgow architect Mr Charles Ménart. A transept was to be built, interior decoration enhanced, and the whole building to be surmounted by an imposing copper-clad dome topped by a cross. Altar piece painting The Incredulity of St Thomas, commissioned by Charles X of France 1828.
the official re-opening of the church by the then Bishop of Aberdeen, the Right Reverend Aeneas Chisholm, on September 13, 1916.
Four further stained glass windows were installed in the l970s, through the generosity of other benefactors. These depict Our Lady of Aberdeen, Saint Margaret of Scotland, Saint Andrew and Saint John Ogilvie, whose canonisation was by then imminent. These windows were designed and made by the Benedictine monk Ninian Sloane in the workshops at Pluscarden Abbey near Elgin.
Rev. Maximilian McKeown OFMConv