“My House will be a House of Prayer”
October is a special month for St Hilda’s. In October 1904 the Bishop of Manchester dedicated the newly built church on Whittaker Lane to “the glory of God” and in the name of St Hilda of Whitby.
On the 20th of the month we will be celebrating the anniversary of this Dedication and will be offering prayers of Thanksgiving for 115 years of service in the community in Prestwich.
A church is just a building – the real strength of St Hilda’s is the community of the faithful – the hundreds, and perhaps thousands, who have come into this beautiful building during all those years to worship together in celebration of the Holy Mass.
This continues today as Holy Mass is celebrated every Sunday and on five other days every week.
However, the motto of St Hilda’s is “Faith and Fun” as we come together not only in prayer but also in Friendship in our wide range of social activities.
As we start a month that is scheduled to have a momentous conclusion for the whole country let us pray that those in power receive and act upon the Gift of Wisdom in all their decision making.
God Bless
“Lift High the Cross – the love of Christ proclaim”.
On September 14thwe hold the Feast of the Holy Cross. A wooden cross – under the oppressive rule of the Romans this was a symbol of a cruel and humiliating death but which in Christian times has become for us a symbol of hope and redemption.
How often do we see and use this sign? We are baptized in it, we cross ourselves when we pray, we are blessed with the sign of the cross at Mass and as the priest in the sacrament of confession makes the sign of the cross so we are forgiven for our sins.
The Roman Emperor Constantine, preparing for battle at Milvian Bridge saw a vision of a cross in the sky with the words “In this sign you will conquer”. He had a cross inscribed on the shields of his army and won a convincing victory. At his command Christianity became the official religion of the Roman Empire – in other words throughout the known world.
Constantine’s mother, Helena, already a devout Christian, discovered in Jerusalem the remains of the cross on which Jesus had been crucified, the True Cross. The relics were shown to be genuine as a man’s leprosy was cured when he touched the wood.
We have the cross with us constantly; I have one over my bed and also at my front door and another on a chain around my neck.
Next time that we dip our finger in the Holy Water and trace the sign of the Passion of Jesus on our forehead, chest and shoulders let us take a moment to think about just what we are doing and why we are doing it
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Fr. Croft
“Glory be to Jesus, who in bitter pains, poured for me the life-blood from his sacred veins.”
July is the month in the Church’s year when we reflect on how Jesus shed his blood for us – allowing himself to suffer a cruel death to atone for all the sins of mankind.
We are now in High Summer, (though it seems difficult to believe with the recent weather), and so many are setting off on holidays. The temptation is, during this time away, to let our spiritual life become less of a priority but we should really make the effort to keep up our observance, to try to get to church at least once a week. We need that contact with the Lord just as much in foreign climes as when we are back home with friends and family at St Hilda’s.
We are so lucky to have such a successful and welcoming school as part of our community. The children will be counting the days to the end of term and the start of the long holiday. At St Hilda’s we look forward to sharing in the celebrations as we say goodbye and wish good luck to all those making the huge step into secondary school.
I wish you all well for the Summer – may the sun shine both in the sky and in our hearts. This is the time when we take the chance to recharge our batteries as we store up the energy to help us face up to whatever September will bring.
God Bless
“O thou, most light so pure and blest, shine within the inmost breast”.
On Sunday 9thJune we celebrate the lovely Feast of Pentecost. This is the day when we celebrate the founding of the Church – when the Holy Spirit came down on the apostles and gave them the strength to go out and spread the Word.
I remember with nostalgia my younger days, when we walked in procession at Whitsun – if you were privileged you were given the honour of holding one of the ribbons attached to the banner. This was for the well-behaved; naughty boys had to walk at the back!
I have wonderful memories of those processions; I can picture them still as we paraded through the streets led by Britannia. The city bedecked in yellow and green; the Bishop giving his blessing in the centre of Piccadilly.
I am sad that that so much of that pageantry has disappeared as it served as a reminder to us of the momentous event that occurred in that upper room so long ago.
So, let us all, each one of us, as we go forward into “flaming June” pray that the Holy Spirit will come down into our hearts and kindle in them the desire to serve others. One of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit is Wisdom; let us pray that we will be guided towards and helped to always follow the right path towards our final destination where St Peter will be waiting to welcome us.God Bless
Fr Croft