The Holy Name

Introduction

The Catholic parish of the Holy Name in Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne, was founded on 1st December 1901. The present Church of the Holy Name was solemnly opened on 19th November 1929.

History

In 1904 the first parish priest moved to St Joseph’s, Gateshead and was replaced by Fr Aloysius Johnson who served at Holy Name for the next 45 years until his death in 1950. In 1909 a Building Fund for a new church was started. By 1912, the year when pastoral statistics were first published for Holy Name, the Catholic population of Jesmond was recorded as 420 with 13 baptisms. In 1928 the Building Fund had reached £5,000 and permission was given for a new church to be built.

The first sod was cut in June 1928 and the foundation stone was laid by Bishop Joseph Thorman on 30th September. Fr Johnson died in June 1950, aged 81, and was succeeded by Fr Michael Henry. Fr Henry died in retirement in 1971 and Fr John Crumbley succeeded him. Fr Crumbley remained in post for only six months, having arrived at Holy Name in poor health and learning soon afterwards that his illness was terminal; he died in 1972.

The present parish priest has served at Holy Name since late August 2013. The parish runs book, poetry, wine, film, bridge and travel clubs.

Music and liturgy

The choir provides online learning aids for all the music it sings, so members can learn at home at their own pace. The organists, musicians and singers lead and accompany music at Mass and other services.

Parish life

The parish runs a Funeral Ministry for church members to provide a strong presence at all funerals in church. The parish runs a Children's Liturgy on Sundays during morning Mass, led by catechists, for children who have not yet made their First Holy Communion. The parish runs a ministry of Ministers of Holy Communion who distribute Holy Communion both in Mass and to those confined to their homes. The parish runs a Readers ministry, open to all, proclaiming the Word of God during Mass.

The parish runs a Sacristans ministry preparing the church for Mass and other services. The parish runs a Church Cleaners ministry, open to all, keeping the church clean and in good order.

Parishioners with a serious illness may have the Sacrament of the Sick in their homes, in the presence of family and friends if they wish. A former Trustee of St Cuthbert’s Care, the diocesan social welfare agency, was Chairman of the charity from 2004 to 2015. The same person was responsible until 2018 for the on-going formation in the Diocese of those ordained to the Permanent Diaconate.

Regular events

The anniversary year concluded with an exhibition and a Fauré Requiem Mass on the weekend of 2/3 November 2019. A communal celebration of the Anointing of the Sick was planned during a Prayer Service in late spring or summer of the anniversary year. The first anniversary celebration took place on 23 June 2018 on HMS Calliope on the River Tyne. The flower arrangers decorate the church with displays according to the liturgical season and time of year.

Sacraments and pastoral care

The Children's Liturgy takes place in a different venue during the Liturgy of the Word, with children rejoining the Mass at the Procession of the Gifts. Confirmation for young people in the partnership (Heaton, Benton, Forest Hall, Walker, Byker, Gosforth, North Gosforth and Jesmond) is based at St Teresa's Church in Heaton. The parish requires a minimum of six months notice before a proposed wedding date for marriage preparation.