Our parish
The Parish of the Holy Spirit East Manchester, a part of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford. A welcoming community which is diverse in terms of nationality, culture and even religious upbringing. We are nevertheless a part of one faith community in Jesus Christ The Parish came into existence in 2017 with the amalgation of the parishes of St Anne’s and St Brigid’s Roman Catholic Parish Ancoats and the St Willibrord’s Roman Catholic Parish Clayton. This came about as the Diocese of Salford took up a restructuring of the diocese to fit into the new reality of the diocese as she responds to the need of the faithful in this locality.
The name of the new parish, “Parish of the Holy Spirit” was chosen because of the involvement of the Spiritans (members of the Congregation of the Holy Spirit) who are serving this parish. The parish now covers the territory of the two amalgamated parishes giving it a very wide broad area of coverage, from Droylsden to Ancoats, and Beswick to Miles Platting. Our three churches have rich histories and a look at any of them confirms our statement.
Mission Statement
We the parishioners of Holy Spirit Parish are a vibrant community rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ and united around the table of the Eucharist. We celebrate and live our faith together through Prayer, the Sacraments and service to others. We are a missionary Church, bonded together by shared values of Justice and Peace, striving to be open, loving and caring. We invite every person to join us in growing together in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit, as we commit ourselves to be stewards of creation taking care of the environment, our common home.
Our story…
St Willibrord’s Church is a Grade Two listed building which was built in 1937-38 which is the current church building. The name Willibrord was chosen by Fr Sassen who was a Dutch priest who acquired the land in Clayton from St Brigid’s for a church in 1905. Willibrord was the first Bishop of Utrecht.
The new parish was opened in 1906. Before the church was opened Mass was held in a room above the school. The Foundation Stone was laid by the Bishop of Salford. Fr Charles Hanrahan developed the parish, he was followed by Richard Mortimer who devoted most of his life to the parish of St. Willibrord. Fr Patrick Dillon supervised the building of the present church which was opened in 1938. The altar in St Willibrord’s church is the original altar which has a mosaic design on the front.
Feast day: 7th November