350-Year Chapter Closes as Final Service Held at Boveedy Presbyterian Church

A 350-year chapter came to a close over the Christmas period with the final service held at Boveedy Presbyterian Church.

While the present church building dates from the mid-19th century, Presbyterian worship has taken place on the site since 1680.

The closure follows the amalgamation of three Presbyterian congregations in the wider Kilrea area.

On Sunday, 28 December, services of thanksgiving were held at both Boveedy Presbyterian Church and Second Kilrea Presbyterian Church, marking the end of an era and giving thanks for generations of worship and community life.

Councillor Richard Holmes said,

"Boveedy Presbyterian Church held its final service onSunday, 28th December 2025. Fittingly, it was a service of thanksgiving for past ministry and preparation for future ministry in Boveedy and Kilrea.

"Three congregations are amalgamating as the church consolidates, and each church will hold special memories for families who grew up there.

"A church closure is sad. Whilst not our family church, Boveedy Church was nevertheless a venue for weddings and funerals of family, friends and neighbours. It was a venue for school parties. And like any church, it was the symbol of faith in the local area.
When Dad died, Rev McCormick, Boveedy’s final minister, took time to visit our home and pray with a grieving family. His kindness and comforting words have never been forgotten in our home.

"Presbyterians have been worshipping in Boveedy since at least 1680. In 1770, when the congregation decided to build a new church in Kilrea, a staggering 226 families remained at Boveedy and continued a church there.

"For the congregants, they will have rejoiced as children were baptised there, celebrated at family weddings and wept as a coffin was carried down the aisle.

"Sixteen ministers have tended the flock in Boveedy since 1680, some for only a few years and one for almost 60 years. But their sermons will have impacted the lives of those who chose to worship there and built legacies in homes that outlasted their ministries for generations to come.

"Our country is peppered with abandoned churches - a testament to a time when Christian worship was a staple of every family. With the decline in Christian worship comes the inevitable decline in a nation’s well-being. It is not hard to see the decline around us today."