St. Margaret of Scotland, Newark

In order to meet the spiritual needs of a growing number of Catholics in the area, it seemed necessary to the Most Reverend Michael A. Saltarelli, eighth Bishop of Wilmington, to establish a new parish. This would be the first new parish created in the Diocese since Saint Luke was raised from a mission church to a parish in 1985. So, a small group of parishioners began gathering in 1998 in prayer and hope to lay a foundation for what was jokingly called Saint Pencader. It wasn't until Easter of 1999 that the parish finally had a name and a patron: Saint Margaret of Scotland.

On May 22, 1999, the Feast of Pentecost, they gathered in te Pencader Corporate Commons their temporary church, the Warehouse, with Bishop Michael Saltarelli, to celebrate the first Mass as a parish community. This temporary home of 20,000 square feet housed a worship space and provided several office, meeting area, and religious education programs.

They were not destined to stay in the warehouse for long, however, and on June 2, 2006, they gathered at the corner of Route 40 and Frazer Road, on the same 80-acre property as Christ the Teacher School, to break ground for the parish's permanent home.

Work proceeded quickly on the church and parish offices, and Bishop Saltarelli returned to Saint Margaret to dedicate the church and altar on November 11, 2007, eight years after the parish was founded. After Mass, the bishop also blessed an outdoor sculpture of Saint Margaret. The statue shows the saint clutching a Bible and a crucifix, with the body of Jesus facing her to depict the intimacy she shared with Christ. As part of the Sustaining Hope for the Future Capital Campaign, the parish has raised funds and is working to build a parish hall.

Saint Margaret of Scotland is a vibrant, welcoming community of Catholic believers, celebrating the Sacraments, justice and charity, and providing a variety of programs and services for our community.