ST Brendan’s, Moorooka parishioners, on Brisbane’s southside, hope to again be attending Mass in their church by Christmas after a fire badly damaged the building on October 15.
Parish secretary Glenda Burton said the top section of the building had suffered extensive smoke and water damage and the roof had to be replaced.
Parish administrator Fr John Scarrott has been celebrating Mass in the parish hall underneath the church since the blaze.
Ms Burton said the original idea was to set up a marquee in the church grounds.
“However, we discovered the hall on the ground floor had only suffered minor water damage,” she said.
“This was soon cleaned up and it was quickly turned into a temporary church.”
The fire, which was thought to have been started by a faulty wire, caused more than $500,000 damage to the 87-year-old church.
Ms Burton said the church had a long way to go before being ready to hold Masses again, but with a quick start to rebuilding and the support of the community they hoped to re-open it on December 10.