St Francis of Assisi, Bedworth
The Roman Catholic Parish Church of Saint Francis of Assisi is located in Bedworth, Warwickshire, England.[1] The parish is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham and a part of the Rugby Deanery. The current Parish Priest is Fr. Michael Gamble.[2] The parish is jointly administered with the neighbouring parish of Our Lady of the Sacred Heart, Bulkington (whilst still remaining technically separate). Working alongside the diocesan clergy are a group of Sisters of Providence of Saint Mary-of-the-Woods.
Brief history
The church was originally opened in June 1883. Casting a tentative shadow over Rye Piece, (a little side-street in the middle of the town), it was built at a time when Catholics were, unfortunately, still viewed with suspicion. It was a modest, oblong structure built in traditional Victorian redbrick with a small schoolroom running along the west side.
The money to build it was raised by the priest, Fr Pius, not entirely from his sparse congregation but by simply begging all over the country. Funds for further development were supplemented by two long-running novenas dedicated to St Peter of Alcantara and St Francis Xavier.
In 1894 a school was built close to the church. Originally big enough to accommodate some 150 pupils aged from 4 to 14 years, eventually it was superseded by a new school. It is now a nursery.
The church itself was extended finally into its present form to be consecrated on 4 September 1923 and one of the hundreds of Catholic churches built following the Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829. A memorial to all the dedicated priests and parishioners of the past, particularly Fr Francis (1892 – 1912). He was a legend in his own lifetime whose French background undoubtedly influenced the unique character of the church. He acquired land around the church to build the new school, the presbytery, to build social housing and he bought an old brewery to serve as a social club. So the Catholic community which had first congregated in a disused shop in one of Bedworth's many yards, then a small chapel, finally had its own church, yet with the sanctuary at the west end and opposite to the original.
Schools
- St Francis of Assisi Roman Catholic Primary School (feeds into St. Thomas More Catholic School, in the neighbouring parish of Our Lady of the Angels, Nuneaton).
References
External links
- Parish Website
- Archdiocesan Parish Directory
- v
- t
- e
- Archbishops and bishops of Birmingham
- I: William Bernard Ullathorne
- II: Edward Ilsley
- III: John McIntyre
- IV: Thomas Leighton Williams
- V: Joseph Masterson
- VI: Francis Grimshaw
- VII: George Dwyer
- VIII: Maurice Couve de Murville
- IX: Vincent Nichols
- X: Bernard Longley
- Churches
- St Chad's Cathedral - Metropolitan Cathedral Church and Basilica of St Chad
- St John the Evangelist Church, Banbury
- St Francis of Assisi Church, Bedworth
- Birmingham Oratory
- Erdington Abbey, Birmingham
- Our Lady Help of Christians, Tile Cross, Birmingham
- Our Lady and St Brigid, Northfield, Birmingham
- Our Lady and St Rose of Lima, Weoley Castle, Birmingham
- St Anne's Church, Birmingham
- St Catherine of Siena Church, Birmingham
- St Edward's Church, Selly Park, Birmingham
- St Francis of Assisi Church, Handsworth, Birmingham
- St Mary's Church, Harborne, Birmingham
- St Michael's Church, Birmingham
- St Mary and St Modwen Church, Burton-on-Trent
- St Giles' Church, Cheadle
- Holy Trinity Church, Chipping Norton
- St Osburg's Church, Coventry
- St Peter and St Paul and St Elizabeth Church, Coughton
- Church of the Sacred Heart and St Catherine, Droitwich Spa
- St Peter's Church, Leamington Spa
- Holy Trinity Church, Newcastle-under-Lyme
- Our Lady of the Angels Church, Nuneaton
- St Anne's Church, Nuneaton
- Oxford Oratory
- St Edmund and St Frideswide Church, Oxford
- Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, Redditch
- St Marie's Church, Rugby
- St Austin's Church, Stafford
- Our Lady of the Angels and St Peter in Chains Church, Stoke-on-Trent
- St Mary's Church, Uttoxeter
- St Mary's Church, Walsall
- Church of Our Lady and St Hubert, Warley
- St Mary Immaculate Church, Warwick
- St Mary and St John Church, Wolverhampton
- St Peter and St Paul's Church, Wolverhampton
- St George's Church, Worcester
- Patronal Feasts of the Diocese
- Saint Chad (2 March)
- Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception (8 December)
- Schools
- Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School
- Bishop Challoner Catholic College
- Bishop Milner Catholic College
- Bishop Ullathorne Roman Catholic School
- Bishop Walsh Catholic School
- Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College
- Blessed George Napier Roman Catholic School
- Blessed William Howard Catholic School
- Cardinal Griffin Catholic College
- Cardinal Newman Catholic School and Community College
- Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Coventry
- Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Birmingham
- Greyfriars Catholic School
- Hagley Roman Catholic High School
- Holy Trinity Catholic Academy of Stafford and Stone
- Holy Trinity Catholic School, Birmingham
- John Henry Newman Catholic College
- The Oratory Preparatory School
- The Oratory School
- Our Lady and St Chad Catholic Academy
- Painsley Catholic College
- Princethorpe College
- Rye St Antony School
- St Augustine's High School, Redditch
- St Benedict's Catholic High School, Alcester
- St Dominic's Grammar School
- St Dominic's Priory School, Stone
- St Edmund Campion Catholic School
- St Edmund's Catholic Academy
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College
- St John Fisher Catholic College
- St John Wall Catholic School
- St Joseph's College, Stoke-on-Trent
- St Margaret Ward Catholic Academy
- St Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School
- St Paul's School for Girls, Birmingham
- St Peter's Catholic School, Solihull
- St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, Birmingham
- St Thomas More Catholic Academy
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Nuneaton
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Willenhall
- Stuart Bathurst Catholic High School
- Trinity Catholic School
- See also:
- Newman University
- St Mary's College, Oscott
- Maryvale Institute
- Cotton College
- Harvington Hall
- Philip Pargeter
- St Mary's Abbey, Colwich
- St Mary's Convent, Handsworth
- Carmelite Monastery, Wolverhampton
- Oxford University Catholic Chaplaincy
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- Apostolic Vicariate of the Midland District
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