| Holy Cross Church Église Sainte-Croix | |
| Location Town: | Lewiston, Maine |
| Location Country: | United States |
| Construction Start Date: | 1924 |
| Completion Date: | 1926 |
| Style: | Baroque |
Holy Cross Church is a church at 1080 Lisbon Street in Lewiston, Maine and is part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland.
Over the main door of the church is the motto (Hail to the cross, our only hope) - a line from the ancient Latin hymn Vexilla Regis Prodeunt. The inside of the church is adorned with important statues, a wooden carved altar, and gold leaf wrought iron railings. The stained windows also depict important Catholic Saints, and each window was donated by a parishioner.
The original church celebrated its first mass on September 14, 1924. The parishioners were largely of French Canadian heritage; after some early controversy over the name of the church, by 1926 the French name Église Sainte-Croix was adopted and the membership became almost entirely French American, as the Irish-American members joined St. Patrick's Church.[1] [2]
A new church was constructed after World War II, and an extensive renovation was completed in 1985.[3]
Many marriages took place at Holy Cross Church and a recent book was written by Youville Labonté which relates to the genealogy involved.[4]
The Catholic Church of Lewiston has a library of some 3,500 items.[5]