St Joseph - Sale

Introduction

St Joseph's Church in Sale, in the Diocese of Shrewsbury, was opened in May 1885, designed by Heathcote and Rawle. The church was consecrated in the summer of 1930. The church is built of Accrington brick in a simple Romanesque-early gothic style.

History

A school-chapel dedicated to Saint Joseph was built in 1866 on Hope Road. Father Michael Crawley was appointed parish priest in 1870 and served for thirty years. The east end was extended by Heathcote and Sons in time for the consecration in 1930. The sanctuary was re-ordered in the late 1960s following Vatican II. The parish expanded to include Holy Family in Sale Moor on 11th February 2013.

Architecture and furnishings

The Baptistry was added in 1922 in memory of parish men killed in the First World War. The organ and organ loft were reorganised in memory of a canon. The extension completed the original plan of the church with a sanctuary, two side-chapels and additional rooms connecting the church with the presbytery. When a porch was added to the west door the old internal porch was removed, resulting in improved access to the church.

At about this time another two rooms were added behind the sacristy improving facilities for servers and flower arrangers. The decoration of the sanctuary and side chapels had been completed together with new altar-rails. Stained-glass depicting the crucifixion had been installed in the east window.

Music and liturgy

The parish has a Male Voice Choir that sings in four parts at special events such as the Mass of All Nations. On Good Friday the children of the parish perform the stations of the cross in a service in the church. The parish has an organised group of 40 readers ranging in age from school year 7 to year 70, covering week-day Masses, Saturday evening Mass and three Masses on Sunday.

Parish life

The parish has a tradition of prayerful and participative liturgy with the inclusion of several lay ministries, including altar servers. Ministers of Holy Communion distribute the Sacrament at Mass and take Holy Communion to the sick and housebound.

St Joseph's SVP Conference has raised money for various overseas projects, for example, a recent project was the "Pakistani Floods Appeal". St Joseph's has an annual Mass of Remembrance celebrated on the last Thursday of November.

The Catenian Association is a society of over 10,000 Catholic men, with over 300 Circles in countries including the UK, Ireland, Australia, India and Malta. The Catenian Association groups meet at least once a month in local units called Circles and organise a variety of social and other events for members, family and friends. The walking group organises a series of monthly walks throughout the year.