English Martyrs, Alvaston

Introduction

For English Martyrs in Alvaston, the dedication was matched by taking Saint John Fisher and Saint Thomas More as the church's principal saints.

History

Alvaston's first mission opened on Hollis Street in April 1909. In 1909 a new chapel was founded in Alvaston, taken out of Saint Mary's parish. Registers name John Butler, Patrick Maloney, James O'Connor, Claude E. Bostock (died 1956), Thomas Loretto du Manoir, Michael Patrick Butler, William Henry McDonald, Michael Tarpey and Bartholomew Dempsey. In October 2000 the Chapel of Ease at Chellaston dedicated to Saint Ralph Sherwin was incorporated into the parish.

Architecture and furnishings

Toward the end of construction in 1952, an Italian family laid mosaic over much of the sanctuary. A tower to the right of the main entrance was part of the original design and was later abandoned because of cost. The apse crucifix, imported from Italy, represents Christ as King and High Priest.

Four further depictions of Anglo-Saxon female saints were commissioned for the day-chapel walls. Statues of Saint George the Martyr, patron of England, and Saint Edmund, King and Martyr of East Anglia, are also in the Sacred Heart Chapel. Restored in 2006, the Our Lady of Fatima statue is the centrepiece of the Lady Chapel. Statues of Saint Joseph with the child Jesus and Saint Anthony of Padua stand just before the chapel entrance.

A statue of Saint Edward, King and Martyr, is mounted overlooking the nave. At the church in Alvaston, a small carved wooden credence table is dedicated to John Doherty's memory.

Parish life

English Martyrs Parish, whose centres of worship are in Alvaston and Chellaston, takes part in Alvaston Christians Together and Churches Together in Chellaston.

Sacraments and pastoral care

Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion carry the Blessed Sacrament on visits to sick and housebound people, with each visit set to suit the minister and the person visited. A baptised Catholic who lives in the parish and is free to marry may marry at English Martyrs, and must get in touch with the parish priest at least a year before. The Derby Deanery runs a pre-baptism course that is included in preparation for a child's baptism.

Notable people and events

Leo Frederick Bermingham, who died on 31 October 1947, was the vicarious from 1921 until 1922. In 1937 the Rev. John C. Dowd, ordained on 20 May 1934, was appointed resident parish priest and served Alvaston through the Second World War until 1942. In 1942 Father Christopher McKeown, ordained on 12 June 1938, was appointed parish priest and lived at the old presbytery, 1166 London Road, bought some years before. Canon Christopher McKeown died on 23 May 1982 after forty years as parish priest of English Martyrs and was buried on Thursday 27 May.