Sacred Heart, Westbury-on Trym

Introduction

Sacred Heart, Westbury-on Trym, in Westbury-on-Trym, takes its dedication from the Shrine of the Sacred Heart at Paray-le-Monial, original home of the Visitation nuns. On 13 September 1939 Bishop Lee blessed the church, which was completed in that year.

History

A community of French nuns is the route through which the origins of Sacred Heart parish are traced. The foundation stone for the new church was laid by the bishop in March 1939. Three bishops and over fifty clergy attended when the church was consecrated on 20 June in the Holy Year of 1950. The original foundation of Saint Antony's was as a daughter church of Sacred Heart. Coaches brought parishioners from the new Henbury estates to Mass at Sacred Heart in the early 1950s.

Architecture and furnishings

Construction of the church was the work of Stansell and Co Ltd of Taunton. In 1985 the church was re-ordered and redecorated, and new lighting and sound systems were installed. Dedication of a new wooden statue of the Sacred Heart took place on 17 February 2007.

Parish life

The Lunch Club began in November 1982 and now serves well over 20 people, offering food and company at the Newman Hall to parishioners over 65. The Union of Catholic Mothers meets twice monthly, and membership is open to all Catholic women, married and single, and to women in sympathy with its aims. Prayer groups meet in the parish's two churches, some weekly and some monthly.

Regular events

Flower arrangers decorate the church for Sundays and all major festivals, and the team is open to everyone. Annual productions of Gilbert and Sullivan continue through the Bristol Catholic Players, who are based in the parish hall. Visiting speakers give talks for the Union of Catholic Mothers, which also holds an annual summer outing.

Sacraments and pastoral care

Three Sunday groups make up Little Church: pre-school children with a parent, school-age children before First Holy Communion, and children who have made First Holy Communion; these groups leave at the start of Mass and return at the Offertory, and visitors are welcome. The Union of Catholic Mothers has Masses offered for its deceased members and for the sick.

The pastoral committee's main task is to help the parish with its pastoral focus and to encourage pastoral activities in mission, prayer and communion. Children may be baptised in the parish, and adults who wish to follow the Christian life in the Catholic Church are directed to the RCIA programme. Children are prepared for Communion through the First Holy Communion and Reconciliation course, and adults through the RCIA course. Baptised Catholic children in Year 3 and above are invited to prepare for First Holy Communion and First Confession.

In Advent and Lent, penitential services are held at which several priests hear confessions. Confessions can also be heard by appointment. Confirmation for teenagers, with its preparation programme, takes place every two years at this church and at Saint Antony's. Weddings may be booked at this church or at Saint Antony's. The parish invites sick people and their family members to receive the Sacrament of the Sick.

Visiting

The site has a church car park and parking by the Newman Hall, on-street parking, cycle racks, wheel-chair access, a loop system for people with hearing difficulties, baby-change facilities, and provision for people with limited mobility.