The gala bicentennial celebration of the founding the first Catholic church in New Jersey – Sacred Heart in Trenton – will build to a crescendo Oct. 12 when Bishop David M. O’Connell, C.M. serves as the main celebrant of the anniversary Mass.

The Mass will begin at noon in the Romanesque revival style structure on the South Broad Street campus which spans a city block of the capitol. A dinner at the Trenton Country Club will follow the Mass.

Since February, Catholics from around the state capitol and beyond have been commemorating the 1814 founding of what began as a small, simple church dedicated to St. John the Baptist and transformed over the centuries into the anchor of faith known as the Church of the Sacred Heart.

The parish began with 30 families from both sides of the Delaware River – a tradition that carried down through the centuries to today.

Over the decades, the congregation grew as each new group of immigrants reached the area: Irish fleeing the potato famine, German and French arrivals added to the flavor.

Now in its third incarnation – the second, larger St. John’s Church was destroyed by fire in 1883 – Sacred Heart has been a familiar presence on the landscape since 1889. The distinctive structure with its strong, central block flanked by identical towers and crested by cupolas and crosses, was designed by Patrick Charles Keely, one of 19th century America’s most prominent and prolific Catholic architects.

The church and its surrounding campus have been the site or launching pad for a number of anniversary observances this year.

Honoring its venerable history, faithful have set off on the pilgrim road from there to shrines of the great saints of the Delaware Valley: St. Katharine Drexel, St. Frances Xavier Cabrini and St. John Neumann.

They have renewed their marriage vows, attended lectures on faith related topics and nights of reflection. Special collections, including one taken in May for Bibles to share with prison inmates have been part of the commemoration.

The Feast of St. John the Baptist served as an appropriate gateway to a parish retreat June 24 to 27 with morning, and evening sessions punctuated by a light lunch and evening refreshments. The parish picnic in Yardville’s CYO grounds followed June 29.

 Aside from the Anniversary Mass, still to come 7 to 9 p.m. Sept. 13 is a  Sacred Heart School reunion for alumni, faculty, PTA members, families and parishioners. The school is fondly remembered as an institution that educated generations of young people for 141 years – from 1854-1995.

A parish pilgrimage to Italy, including Rome, Assisi and Florence, will be held Oct. 19 to 29 preceding the Nov. 23 closing Mass of the anniversary year.

For information, call 609-393-2801 or visit www.trentonsacaredheart.