Anderton St Joseph's        
                Newsletter
TUESDAY 5th AUGUST: As you know, St Mary’s Chorley is a designated Pilgrim Church during this special Jubilee Year. Mrs Stella Gore has arranged the following: There will be a Mass for Pilgrims of Hope, beginning with Confesions at 11.30 am with Fr Marsden and Fr Crowther, Mass at 12.00 noon, followed by a gathering in the parish centre. Please bring your own packed lunch. Hot drinks will be served. Everyone is invited and it is a good opportunity to walk through the Pilgrim Doors, here at St Mary’s Chorley. Plenary indulgences may be obtained under the usual conditions.


EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

3rd AUGUST 2025


Someone in the crowd said to Jesus, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” But he said to him, “Man, who made me a judge or arbitrator over you?” And he said to them, “Take care, and be on your guard against all covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” 
And he told them a parable, saying, “The land of a rich man produced plentifully, and he thought to himself, ‘What shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?’ And he said, ‘I will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. And I will say to my soul, “Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.”’ 
But God said to him, ‘Fool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?’ So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.”

Sat 2nd 
17.00Vigil Mass at St Mary’s Chorley 

Sun 3rd EIGHTEENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME (C) 
09.30Mass at St Mary’s

11.00Mass – Maria Teresa Abraham 
Confessions after Mass if required


Mon 4thSt John Vianney

Tues 5thSt Oswald 
10.00 Mass with Perpetual Succour Novena – Kathleen Mullen  

Wed 6thTHE TRANSFIGURATION OF THE LORD 

Thurs 7thBl. John Woodcock, Edward Bamber and Thomas Whitaker 

Fri 8thSt Dominic
10.00 Mass - Catherine and Hector Taylor 
14.30Funeral Service – Steven Green 

Sat 9thSt Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein)  

Sun 10thNINETEENTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME (C) 
09.30Mass at St Mary’s

11.00Mass – Steven Green LD 


RETIRING COLLECTIONS:  3rd August - Church Restoration Fund.  

BAPTISM BOOKINGS DATES AVAILABLE:  31st Aug, 28th Sept. Oct 26th. Nov. 30th Baptisms will take place at 12.00 Parents should collect a baptism booking form and an Order of Service from the Sacristy after Sunday Mass. Bring the booking form back one Sunday following so that any necessary preparation can be arranged.

PLEASE PRAY FOR THE SICK AND THE HOUSEBOUND:  Joan Bailey, Francis Brennan, 
Mary Brophy, Anne Byrne, Mary Patricia Case, Ken Catterall, Gerard Clarke, Rita Denver, Leo Duffy, 
Pat Font, Tom Fraser, William Freeman, Bob Goulding, Rosemary Hough, Cathy Hull, Peter Hull, 
Mary Johnston, Abp Patrick Kelly, John Kerfoot, Bill King, Emma King, Val McGlade, Janet McGowan, Fintan McPeake, Teresa Martin, Fr Laurence Mayne, David Molloy, Ellen Morris, Irene O'Neill, 
Heidi O’Neill, Lauren O’Neill, Barrie Swift, Josette Walsh, Lorraine Waugh, Jean White, 
all at Grove House & Marley Court. 

RECENTLY DECEASED: Steven Green (50), son of Patricia and Lincoln green. His funeral service will take place this Friday 8th August at 14.30, followed by cremation at Overdale at 16.00. May he rest in peace and rise in glory. Deighans are the undertakers concerned. 

Bl. John Woodcock, Edward Bamber (Carleton, Fylde) and Thomas Whitaker (Burnley)  
John Woodcock was born at Woodcock Hall in Leyland, Lancashire, in England. His parents, Thomas and Dorothy Anderton Woodcock, were of the middle class. His father conformed to protect the family estate, while his mother remained Catholic.His maternal uncle, William Anderton, was a priest.
John Woodcock converted to Catholicism about 1623, which displeased his father to the extent that John went to live with his maternal grandfather at Clayton. Eventually, he and others crossed over to Belgium. He studied at St-Omer, and after completing the humanities was sent to the English College, Rome, for further theological studies.
His attempt to join the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin in Paris was interrupted by poor health. He wandered around Europe for some time before approaching the English Franciscans at Douai. He received the habit from Henry Heath in 1631, and was given the name Martin of St. Felix, and professed a year later. For some years he lived at Arras as chaplain to a Sheldon. He served in England briefly in 1635 but was sent back to France because of ill health. He was sent to Spa, Belgium to recuperate
Upon learning of the execution in April 1643 of Henry Heath, who had received him into the order, Woodcock applied for permission to return to England. In summer 1644 he landed at Newcastle-on-Tyne and went to Woodcock Hall. He sometimes went by the alias "Farington" He was almost arrested while preparing to say Mass at nearby Woodend, but managed to hide in a priest hole and later escape and return to Woodcock Hall. His father, unwilling to harbour a Catholic priest, sent him away. While trying to reach Preston, he was captured at either Bamber Bridge or Walton-le-Dale.
He was taken to Lancaster Castle prison, where his uncle managed to visit him on occasion. After two years' imprisonment, he was condemned on 6 August 1646, on his own confession, for being a priest, together with Edward Bamber and Thomas Whittaker.(all priests)
On 7 August 1646, in an attempted execution, he was flung off a ladder, but the rope broke. He was then hanged a second time, cut down and disembowelled alive. 
John Woodcock was among the eighty-five martyrs of England and Wales beatified by Pope John Paul II on 22 November 1987.


PAULINE BOOK CENTRE (84 Church Street, Liverpool L1 3AY) 
Provides a wide range of religious resources for individuals, parishes and schools.

BOWLING GREEN DRAINAGE – Thanks to all the hard work by Mr Bernard Roscoe and fellow bowlers, we hope the problem of flooding in the field behind the garage, and in the rented gardens is now solved, and water drainage is connected to the main system near the grotto. However during these works a camera survey found that a drain beneath the surface on the slope up to the car park is collapsed, and that will need to be remedied. It must take water from the cemetery and from the car park, although this is not quite clear. It may explain why we get the recurrent potholes on the entrance slope up to the car park.  

THE ANNUAL PILGRIMAGE MASS TO THE HOLY HAND OF ST EDMUND ARROWSMITH will be taking place at the Church of St Oswald & St Edmund Arrowsmith, Liverpool Road, Ashton-in-Makerfield (WN4 9NP) on Sunday 24 August 2025 at 3.00pm. Canon Sean Riley will be the principal celebrant. The Mass will be followed by a blessing with the Holy Hand.

RE-POINTING JOBS to the side of the parish house (28 Bolton Road) and round the back, and some repairs to gutters and blocked downspouts, have now been completed.


Extracts from Parish Financial Report 2024

Expenditure
Priest’s Allowance 2,250
Wages admin 2,126
Office expenses 2,036
Heat and Light11,100
Insurance 3,958
Grounds maintenance 4,900
Repairs and maintenance15,175
Liturgy & Pastoral 2,076
Travel expenses 188
Water rates 732
Miscellaneous 485 

Total Expenditure £45,510

Income
Total Offertories 22,918
Rents 10,878
Tax Refund on Gift Aid 6,273
Funeral/Cemetery Fees10,704
Wedding and baptisms 902
Mass Stipends 1,325
Votive offerings 565
Altar and flowers 271
Piety Stall 193

Total Income £54,039

Certain small amounts are not included in these figures. 
Collections for other charities £2,965
Restoration Fund current total stands at £10,895

Grateful thanks to everyone who donates regularly and generously to support our parish. You can see that Gift Aiding your donations, if you are a regular tax payer, adds appreciably to the value of your donations. 
During 2024 we fortunately did not have any big repair jobs on the church, leaving us in the black over the year. Anderton Day Nursery have acquired substantial grant funding for the renovation and improvement of the Upper Room, which does not appear in these accounts. 

ST GREGORY’S ANNUAL BEER FESTIVAL - 8TH - 10TH AUGUST: This year’s festival will feature a selection of beers and ciders. Tickets for this event will be £5 each to include a souvenir programme & a free glass of beer. Wine and gin will also be available as well as food from our own Pit Stop café. If you would like to sponsor this event, the cost is £110 per keg. All sponsor’s business/ company names will be included in the festival programme which is issued to all attendees. We can also add a business logo if you have one, all you need to do is email it to us. Sponsors also receive up to 4 complimentary tickets to the event (per keg of beer sponsored). If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please let us know.

CONCERT IN THE GARDEN - SUNDAY 10TH AUGUST: A family event will take place in the Parish Grounds at St Gregory’s. The event will begin at 2:00pm and entry to the concert is free (i.e. no ticket required). Entry to the beer tent is free for those attending the beer festival on Fri/Sat but otherwise entry is £5 on the door. Bring along your friends and family and your own chairs and picnic blankets! There will be live music to entertain you, donkey rides and games for the children. Bring along your own picnic or enjoy food from our BBQ and refreshment stand.

THE ALPHA COURSE (Message from Sr Dorothy) could change your life! It's an opportunity to explore the meaning of life through the lens of the Christian faith, in a relaxed environment. Alpha is for anyone who is curious to find out more about faith, those who are exploring and questioning; cynics, sceptics and the open-minded. This Alpha Course will be run in the Catholic tradition. We'll begin on 21st August 2025 at 19.00 at St. Bede's Parish Centre, Clayton-le-Woods and meet every Thursday for 10 weeks. Please pass on this information to family members and friends who you think might be interested in coming along. For further information or to register your interest please contact: Phone: Sr. Dorothy - 07530 238222 or Julie - 07943 874257
Email:dorothyhindle234@gmail.com or julie-st-bedes@hotmail.com

QUOTATION FROM ST IGNATIUS OF LOYOLA, JESUIT FOUNDER: 
"Lord, teach me to be generous. Teach me to serve you as you deserve; to give, and not to count the cost, to fight, and not to heed the wounds, to toil, and not to seek for rest, to labour, and not to ask for reward, except that of knowing that I am doing your will,"

CHORLEY AND PRESTON HOSPITALS: Please contact St Joseph's Chorley (262713) if any member of your family is admitted into Chorley Hospital and needs a visit. In urgent cases or emergency please ask the ward staff to call the duty Chaplain on his bleep/phone. For the chaplaincy service at Royal Preston Hospital Tel: 01772 522435. For the chaplaincy service at Wigan Infirmary Tel: 01942 822324. 








Parish Priest: Fr Francis Marsden
Secretary: Mr Frank Webster 
Parish Office: St Joseph’s Presbytery, 28 Bolton Road, Adlington, PR6 9NA
Wednesdays 10.00-13.00
Tel: all calls now to 01257- 262537 (St Mary’s Chorley)

E-mail: stjosephs.anderton@tiscali.co.uk
Parish Website: www.stjosephsanderton.com

ARCHDIOCESE OF LIVERPOOL Registered Charity No. 1199714
























​     

​