News

News diary

If you’ve got any news from your parish that you’d like featured e-mail us with the details at: catholicpictorial@rcaol.co.uk

Congratulations Dr Morgan

Archbishop Malcolm, with Bishop Tom Williams and Bishop Tom Neylon, several visiting bishops and abbots, together with priests from the archdiocese and beyond, celebrated Mass at St Clare’s Church, Arundel Avenue on Friday 4 November in thanksgiving for the work of Dr Edward Morgan KC, who was created a Knight Commander of the Order of Pope Saint Sylvester by Pope Francis. Canon Christopher Thomas, the general secretary of the bishops’ conference of England and Wales, travelled from London to be present at the celebration. Dr Morgan started life in Huyton in St Aloysius parish. He studied at St Joseph’s College, Upholland and went on to read Law at university. He was called to the Bar and works as a barrister in England and Northern Ireland. He ‘took silk’ and was named Queens Counsel (now Kings Counsel ‘KC’) in 2021. He has worked in the ministry of canon law for 25 years and studied at Katholieke Universiteit Leuven for his licentiate and doctorates. In 2010 he was made a Fellow of the Centre for Law and Religion at the university of Cardiff. He has been a visiting professor of Canon Law at KU Leuven since 2016. During the celebrations, Dr Morgan referred to Father Peter Fox RIP who was a priest in his home parish. He recalled how he, like several Liverpool priests, were spiritual fathers to him and helped him discern the path of travel to live his vocation as a husband, father and lawyer. Following the presentation, the hymn ‘Maria, mater gratiae’ was sung. This is a hymn known to many students of St Joseph’s College, Upholland, asking for Our Blessed Lady’s help as ‘mother of grace’

A special award

On Monday 7 November at the St Margaret Clitherow Centre Archbishop Malcolm celebrated Mass to give thanks for Jean Jones who has served as personal secretary/executive assistant to five Archbishops of Liverpool. The Archbishop was joined by Bishop Tom Williams and Bishop Tom Neylon, former Chaplain to Archbishop Derek Worlock, Monsignor John Furnival, and priests who had worked with Jean over many years. Jean first began working at Archbishop’s House in the early 1960s with Archbishop John Carmel (later Cardinal) Heenan, and went on to serve Archbishop George Andrew Beck, Archbishop Derek Worlock, Archbishop Patrick Kelly and Archbishop Malcolm himself and some years ago received the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice medal in recognition of her work. After communion and to Jean’s great surprise, Canon Aidan Prescott, Vicar General and Chancellor of the archdiocese, announced that Pope Francis had created her a Dame Commander of the Order of St Gregory the Great. This is the highest-level papal award in the history of the Archdiocese of Liverpool. It was Archbishop Malcolm’s great pleasure to present Jean with the award on behalf of Pope Francis to the delight of her family and friends who had joined her for the celebration. There was a drop of champagne and food and drink to continue the celebrations following the presentation of this richly deserved honour for a remarkable servant of the Church. Congratulations Dame Commander Jones!

A rich heritage

by Father David Potter Parish Priest of St Wilfrid, Garston and Chaplain to the UCM

At a side altar of the church of St Francis of Assisi in Garston, there is a stone slab taken from the medieval chantry chapel of St Wilfrid, which stood less than a mile from the site of the present church. An inscription explains that this chapel used to serve the needs of Catholics throughout Garston, Allerton and Grassendale. Centuries later, St Francis’ church again caters for that wider area, after a period in which the territory was divided into four distinct parishes. And the new, larger parish has adopted the name of St Wilfrid. This is the community in which it was my privilege to be inducted as parish priest by Archbishop Malcolm on 12 October. It was a pleasure to see so many of my new parishioners gathered for the Mass, and I was equally grateful to those who made the journey from my previous parish of St Albert the Great, Stockbridge Village. I felt the prayers and support of all present as the Archbishop reminded me of the main responsibilities of a parish priest, which are best defined as to teach, to sanctify and to govern. The parish altar servers, who are notably proficient and well-trained, rose to the occasion, and the blend of organ and viola made for some uplifting music and singing. Many people who attended stayed on for a packed and convivial reception in the Meeting Rooms, and the Induction Mass cake was big enough for slices to be offered to members of the Sunday congregation too several days later. St Wilfrid was Bishop of York for fourteen years from 664 to 678. During that time, he twice appealed to the Pope to resolve disputes in the English Church. At the Synod of Whitby, he also argued that the date of Easter should be determined by the method favoured in Rome, and this was accepted by the Synod Fathers. Of all St Wilfrid’s achievements, this closer aligning of English Catholics with the Holy See was perhaps the most valuable and necessary. As I begin my ministry in the parish which bears Wilfrid’s name, and in a church whose name is shared by the current Pope, I hope that our communion with the Successor of St Peter will always be as deep and solid as our patron would expect it to be.

Archbishop Malcolm with Father David Father David with members of the UCM

Cafod Christmas Run

This year’s Cafod Christmas run is returning once again on Bank Holiday Tuesday, 27 December, at the Mystery, Wavertree Athletics Centre, Wellington Road, L15 4LE. The Cafod run raises vital funds used to support communities in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East to fight poverty and injustice. Funds are used to support local experts who provide practical help in times of crisis and emergency, including helping communities to rebuild their lives after natural disasters, the Coronavirus pandemic and tackling issues associated with the climate crisis.

Run or walk 3K or 5K. Registration will be open from 10.00 am for an 11.00 am start - £5 child, £10 adult, £20 family (cash accepted, contactless available) - but you can also preregister and set up your own fundraising sponsorship page. Visit: https://register.enthuse.com/ps/event/ CAFODChristmasFunRun or contact liverpool@cafod.org.uk for a sponsor form. Follow Cafod Liverpool on Twitter and Facebook to share social media posts.

news diary Warm and Cosy

During the last month the ‘Warm and Cosy’ scheme in the archdiocese has been getting underway providing help and comfort to those trying to cope with the costof-living crisis and the colder weather and things are expanding already. Director of Finance for the archdiocese, Jill Boggan says, ‘One of the things that we’re doing at the moment is putting a rack in each parish centre, where if people wanted to donate a good quality winter coat that they no longer use, hats, gloves, scarves, it will be in that area. We’re calling it “complimentary winter warmers,” so that people can just take what they need if they want to, or they can donate something that they no longer need that might help someone else stay warm.’ Pat Nelson, assistant manager at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Parish Centre in Liverpool says, ‘we’ve had a good response with people coming in to keep warm, have a hot drink, a chat and an opportunity to meet new friends. We’re open for everybody, not just the Catholic community and we’re going to be distributing flyers throughout our local community to encourage people to come and join us between 1.00 pm and 3.30 pm on a Wednesday. ‘In some cases, its about giving people the confidence to come in, but there’s always a great welcome and it’s definitely warm and cosy here.’ Marie, a visitor to Our Lady’s, was certainly happy with the welcome she received, ‘I love it here, all the people are lovely, and I talk to all of them – it’s always warm with a warm welcome.’ At St Jude’s Parish Centre in Wigan Manager, Suzanne Garswood, says, ‘We just want to bring out everybody who wants to come and have a chat and a cup of tea and a biscuit while enjoying good company. Everyone is welcome, people who may not have been out since covid, people who are generally on their own and people who need to keep warm – come down and join us and enjoy yourself.’ Jill Boggan says, ‘We can’t solve everything for everybody, but where we can do something in a practical way to help other people, it is hopefully fulfilling that, and it is an expression of us caring for others, especially during these very difficult times.’ A full list of opening times for the warm and cosy centres is available on the archdiocesan website at www.liverpoolcatholic.org.uk

News from the Spanish speaking community

At the monthly Spanish Speaking Mass in November, it was decided by the community to transfer the Mass to the Church of Our Lady of Victories, on Sandy Lane, Hightown. The church is just one minute walk from Hightown Train Station. Thanks were expressed to the Community of St Vincent’s who have hosted the Mass over the past few months. The Mass will now begin at 3.00 pm on the second Sunday of every month at Our Lady of Victories, Hightown. The Christmas Mass in Spanish will be celebrated on Saturday 24 December at 3.00 pm in Our Lady of Victories. There will also be some prayer activities during Advent in preparation for Christmas. Further information, including activities in preparation for Christmas can be found on the website and Facebook as follows: https://catolicosenliverpool.org.uk https://www.facebook.com/people/Cat%C3%B3licos-enliverpool/100083727447797/

A structure fit for the future

by Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP

Throughout the Church’s long history in England and the Isle of Man, there have been many changes in how the Church is structured, how it owns property and organises its affairs. Unlike other nations which retained Catholicism as the state religion, in this country our ancestors Catholics often had to be much more creative to provide places where people could hear Mass. In the 17th and 18th centuries, when Catholics weren’t allowed to own property and Mass had to be offered in secrecy, properties were provided or owned by others. As catholic emancipation progressed, churches were able to be owned by priests or their benefactors, on trust for the Church. Eventually, following the restoration of the hierarchy and the return of bishops in this country, churches and schools could be owned by diocesan bishops. These properties were then transferred from incumbent priest to priest, or priest to bishop and so forth up to the twentieth century. Each Catholic Diocese in the UK is completely separate from its neighbours, and can operate as its bishop chooses. This reflects the position at canon law, which is set in Rome. In canon law, the diocesan bishop enjoys a similar freedom, and he is limited only in those matters where canon law or a decree of the Pope reserves a matter either to the Pope himself or to another ecclesiastical authority. In the Archdiocese of Liverpool, a trust was created in the 1960s, whereby a group of priests together with the Archbishop were to own all the property of the church in the Archdiocese. The Archdiocesan trust is a charity and is subject to UK charity law and must operate within that as well as canon law. However, that trust is ultimately a group of individual people. More recently we have included in amongst the trustees lay trustees, to support the Archbishop and priests in the operation of the trust with their skills and experience from different professions such as accounting, surveying, safeguarding, education. This reflects best practice for any large charity. Following a review of our current operations the trustees took the decision to move from a trust model to become a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, or a ‘CIO’. A CIO is a charity version of a company, established and regulated by the Charity Commission. The model agreed on in 1963 is no longer the best fit for us now, and many other dioceses and religious orders are going through similar reviews. This is very much a natural progression for organisations such as ours. It will be 60 years since a similar process was last undertaken and this is only the second time since the 1850s that the archdiocese is having such a restructure. The aim is to make the operations of the archdiocese fit for purpose for our mission in the contemporary world, and to secure its future for those who are called to carry out its mission in subsequent generations. On 1 January 2023, the Archdiocese of Liverpool will begin operating as a CIO. The CIO is called ‘Archdiocese of Liverpool’ and has a new charity number, different from the current trust. All the assets and liabilities of the current trust will be transferred over to the CIO. The trustees of the CIO will be the same as those for the current trust. Our governance and operational procedures will all be transferred over. Our trust staff will move over to be employed by the CIO. Any money intended to be received by the old trust, such as any donations, will automatically belong to the CIO. It is a bit like a giant corporate house move. Where there are practical implications for those who deal with the Archdiocese we will be in touch to let you know. However, if you have any queries about this transition, please email cioqueries@rcaol.org.uk and we will endeavour to respond to you as soon as we can. We look forward to starting this next chapter in our story.

news diary Obituary of Rev John Gildea

Father John Gildea, former parish priest of St Charles, Aigburth and St Peter and St Michael, Woolston, died suddenly after a very brief illness on Monday 17 October 2022, aged 84 and in the 60th year of his priesthood. John Alfred Gildea, the son of John and Janet Gildea, was born in Liverpool on 25 November 1937, and he was baptised a few days later at St Hugh of Lincoln, Wavertree. By the time he was of school age the family had moved from Liverpool, so he attended St Luke’s School, Whiston, before entering St Joseph’s College, Upholland, to begin studies for the priesthood. He was ordained by Archbishop Heenan in the college chapel at Upholland on 8 June 1963. Following ordination, he served as assistant priest in several parishes across the archdiocese: St Agnes, Huyton from August 1963; St Matthew, Liverpool from August 1967; St Thomas of Canterbury, Waterloo from August 1972; Holy Angels, Kirkby from September 1974 and St Mark, Halewood from February 1978. His pastoral ministry in these years, and indeed throughout his priestly life, was marked by a wonderful rapport with young people. Many of these skills were honed through his work as a chaplain to young people on the archdiocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes year by year. Whichever parish he served in, he was always an enthusiastic and committed supporter of young people travelling to Lourdes.

In March 1982 he moved to St Charles, Aigburth, Liverpool, to assist Father Thomas Mangan with a view to succeeding him as parish priest, which he did later that year. Over the next several years he built on the foundations laid by his predecessors, allowing the parish to flourish and grow. After sixteen fruitful years in Aigburth, he moved to St Peter and St Michael, Woolston, in September 1998. Here the people benefited from his tireless commitment to their pastoral care right up until the end of his life. In recent years, despite suffering a debilitating stroke, he showed great determination and tenacity in carrying on in active ministry and fulfilling his duties as parish priest. His body was received into St Peter’s Church, Woolston on the evening of Wednesday 2 November when Evening Prayer for All Souls’ Day was led by the Canons of the Metropolitan Cathedral Chapter followed by a Vigil Mass. His Funeral Mass was celebrated by Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP at St Oswald’s Church, Padgate, on Thursday 3 November followed by committal at Walton Lea Crematorium.

Obituary of Rev Bernard Jackson

Father Bernard Jackson former parish priest of All Saints, Golborne and St Mary’s, Birchley died on the afternoon of Tuesday 8 November aged 82 and in the 58th year of his priesthood. Bernard Jackson was born in Warrington on 29 August 1940, the son of James and Monica Jackson. A few days later he was baptised at Blessed English Martyrs’ Church, Haydock, where he spent his formative years, attending the parish primary school before going on to study at the Thomas Linacre Technical School in Wigan. Subsequently, he was accepted as an ecclesiastical student and entered St Joseph’s College, Upholland. He was ordained in the college chapel by Archbishop George Andrew Beck on 12 June 1965. Following ordination, he was appointed to St Clare’s, Liverpool, as one of the assistant priests to the then Vicar General, Monsignor Thomas Adamson. In addition to his parochial duties, he spent much of his time in hospital chaplaincy at both Sefton General and the Lourdes Hospital. At Sefton General Hospital he was chaplain to the Catholic Nurses Guild and, on occasion, played in the staff cricket team. In February 1973, he was appointed as assistant priest at Sacred Heart, Liverpool, and spent much of his time ministering to patients in the Royal Liverpool Hospital. He left Sacred Heart, Liverpool, in January 1979 moving to Sacred Heart, Chorley and then in 1982 to St Aloysius, Roby. His first appointment as parish priest came in March 1984, when he was asked to go to All Saints, Golborne. A major highlight of his tenure was the consecration of the new church, designed by R.T. Edge, in 1992. It was also at Golborne that he celebrated his Silver Jubilee of ordination.

In October 1995, he was asked to succeed Father Kevin Ashton as parish priest of St Mary’s, Birchley. Overnight, he moved from one of the newest churches to one of the oldest churches in the archdiocese. He soon settled into this area steeped in Catholic history, where Catholics in earlier generations had been served from the nearby Birchley Hall. This was the parish to which he devoted himself zealously for the second half of his active priestly ministry, and where he celebrated his Golden Jubilee of ordination in 2015. As well as tending to the needs of his flock, he was also noted for tending to the grounds around the church. His tenure at Birchley was cut short by a very serious illness in April 2019 and he retired that summer. He spent his remaining years at a care home in Aughton. His body was received into St Mary’s Church, Birchley on Friday 18 November with a Vigil Mass, celebrated by Bishop Tom Neylon. His Funeral Mass was celebrated at St Mary’s by Archbishop Malcolm McMahon OP on Saturday 19 November, followed by burial in St Mary’s churchyard.