The Syro-Malabar Cathedral of St Alphonsa also known as St Ignatius Church is a

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

of the Syro-Malabar rite in Preston, Lancashire. It is the cathedral of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Eparchy of Great Britain, and was previously under the

Diocese of Lancaster The Roman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster is a Latin Church Roman Catholic diocese centred on Lancaster Cathedral in the city of Lancaster in Lancashire, England. History The diocese was erected in 1924, taking areas and parishes from the Archd ...

. It is situated close to the Preston city centre, with the entrance on Meadow Street. The building was opened in 1836 and was the first church in Preston to have a spire.Preston
from

British History Online ''British History Online'' is a digital library of primary and secondary sources on medieval and modern history of Great Britain and Ireland. It was created and is managed as a cooperative venture by the Institute of Historical Research, Univer ...

, Retrieved 28 February 2013 Since January 2015, the church has been used as a cathedral for the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church.Lancaster: Bishop saves historic church for Indian Catholics
from ''Independent Catholic News'', 12 January 2015, retrieved 13 January 2015 In 2016

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

raised the status of the church to that of cathedral and appointed Monsignor Joseph (Benny Mathew) Srampickal as the first bishop.Pope Erects Eparchy of Great Britain of Syro-Malabar with a new Bishop
from ''Vatican Radio News'' retrieved 28 July 2016

History

Foundation

Prior to the

Catholic Emancipation Act of 1829 The Catholic Relief Act 1829, also known as the Catholic Emancipation Act 1829, was passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom in 1829. It was the culmination of the process of Catholic emancipation throughout the United Kingdom of Great Br ...

the first legal Roman Catholic churches were built in a simple style similar to that used for Non-Conformist

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

s and often incorporated the priest's house.St Ignatius History
from englishmartyrspreston.org.uk Retrieved 28 February 2013 The church was originally a Jesuit foundation.

Building

St Ignatius is one of the earliest examples of a

Gothic style Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths ** Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken ...

in the city of Preston. Work on the church started in 1833. The architect was

Joseph John Scoles Joseph John Scoles (1798–1863) was an English Gothic Revival architect, who designed many Roman Catholic churches. Early life and education Scoles was born in London on 27 June 1798, the son of Roman Catholic parents Matthew Scoles, a joiner, ...

, who also designed the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street, in London and the

Church of Saint Francis Xavier, Liverpool St Francis Xavier's Church is a Roman Catholic church in Salisbury Street, Everton, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. The church is recorded in the National Heritage List for England as a designated Grade II* listed building. It is an active ...

for the

Society of Jesus , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

. St Ignatius is one of the oldest surviving Roman Catholic church buildings in the city, and the architectural historian Sir Nicholas Pevsner declared it to be of national interest along with the sister Preston church of St Walburge. He said that it was an unusually planned Roman Catholic complex for this date. Originally the church was much smaller, but in 1858 five new bays were added, including a new chancel and side chapels. The architect was

Joseph Hansom Joseph Aloysius Hansom (26 October 1803 – 29 June 1882) was a British architect working principally in the Gothic Revival style. He invented the Hansom cab and founded the eminent architectural journal, '' The Builder'', in 1843. Career ...

who designed St Walburge's in 1847. The church still possesses original designs for stained glass by John Hardman of Hardman & Co., but the windows were not made. Further alterations were made to the church in 1885–6 by

Matthew Ellison Hadfield Matthew Ellison Hadfield (8 September 1812 – 9 March 1885) was an English architect of the Victorian Gothic revival. He is chiefly known for his work on Roman Catholic churches, including the cathedral churches of Salford and Sheffield. Trai ...

and George Webster. The

confessional A confessional is a box, cabinet, booth, or stall in which the priest in some Christian churches sits to hear the confessions of penitents. It is the usual venue for the sacrament in the Roman Catholic Church and the Lutheran Churches, but si ...

s were removed providing space for two new chapels, and the remodelling of the

chancel In church architecture, the chancel is the space around the altar, including the choir and the sanctuary (sometimes called the presbytery), at the liturgical east end of a traditional Christian church building. It may terminate in an apse. Ov ...

. The altar was raised and a new super altar made from Hopton Wood stone placed on it. New confessionals were built outside the walls and a third chapel, of the Sacred Heart, was added at the north end.

Alabaster Alabaster is a mineral or rock that is soft, often used for carving, and is processed for plaster powder. Archaeologists and the stone processing industry use the word differently from geologists. The former use it in a wider sense that include ...

figures and much wood and stone carving were added by Frank Tory of Sheffield.''"150 Years Of Architectural Drawings"'', Hadfield, Cawkwell, Davidson, Brampton Print and Design, , page 75, Details 1886 re-order. The Tablet
1886 re-order. In 1912 a side chapel and

baptistery In Christian architecture the baptistery or baptistry (Old French ''baptisterie''; Latin ''baptisterium''; Greek , 'bathing-place, baptistery', from , baptízein, 'to baptize') is the separate centrally planned structure surrounding the baptismal ...

were added.

Developments

The church had a relationship with St Ignatius Catholic Primary School next door. The school was built in 1863 and extended in 2000. Masses were regularly held in the church for the school. Outside the church is St Ignatius Square. In 1982 the square was declared to be a local conservation area, preventing any development that would significantly change the character of the historic part of Preston.St Ignatius Square
from preston.gov.uk, retrieved 28 February 2013 In 2001, the church saw the departure of its last resident parish priest, and it was merged with the parish of English Martyrs Church. Mass was celebrated in the church once a week, at 9:30 am every Sunday. On 11 October 2014, the parish was amalgamated to include the

congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

s of St Teresa's, St Joseph's and St Augustine's and was renamed the Parish of St John XXIII.

Syro-Malabar Church

On 2 December 2014, the church was closed. On 31 December 2014,

Michael Campbell Michael Shane Campbell (born 23 February 1969) is a New Zealand professional golfer who is best known for having won the 2005 U.S. Open and, at the time, the richest prize in golf, the £1,000,000 HSBC World Match Play Championship, in the ...

Roman Catholic Bishop of Lancaster The Bishop of Lancaster is the Ordinary of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster in the Province of Liverpool, England.George Alencherry George Alencherry ( syr, ܡܵܪܝ ܓܝܼܘܲܪܓܝܼܣ ܐܵܠܲܢܫܝܪܝ, Mar Giwargis Alencherry) is the Major Archbishop of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church and also a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was elected by the Holy Synod of the ...

Major archbishop In the Eastern Catholic Churches, major archbishop (sometimes also styled as major archeparch) is a title for the chief hierarch of an autonomous ('' sui juris'') particular Church that has not been "endowed with the patriarchal title". Major ar ...

of the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church, for exclusive use of a church in Preston by the local Syro-Malabar community. The bishop offered St Ignatius church, which was accepted. The church will remain open for private prayer and have Masses in the Syro-Malabar rite.

People

The 19th century mystic poet

Francis Thompson Francis Joseph Thompson (16 December 1859 – 13 November 1907) was an English poet and Catholic mystic. At the behest of his father, a doctor, he entered medical school at the age of 18, but at 26 left home to pursue his talent as a writer a ...

was baptised at the church in 1859, and the poet Fr Gerard Manley Hopkins SJ was a curate there during the late 1880s.

Gallery

File:St Ignatius' Roman Catholic Church, Preston - geograph.org.uk - 614958.jpg, View of the west side, along St Ignatius Square File:St Ignatius' Roman Catholic Church, Preston - geograph.org.uk - 614949.jpg, South side, along Meadow Street File:St Ignatius' Roman Catholic Church, Preston, Doorway - geograph.org.uk - 614951.jpg, Main western doorway File:War Memorial outside St Ignatius' Church, Preston.jpg, War Memorial outside

References

External links

St John XXIII Parish site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Preston, Saint Alphonsa

Saint Alphonsa Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception or Saint Alphonsa, christened at birth as Anna Muttathupadathu (19 August 1910– 28 July 1946), was a nun and an educator by vocation (profession). She was also known for being a victim soul, visionary ...

Roman Catholic churches in Lancashire Grade II* listed churches in Lancashire Roman Catholic Diocese of Lancaster Grade II* listed Roman Catholic churches in England Roman Catholic churches completed in 1886 Gothic Revival architecture in Lancashire 1833 establishments in England Gothic Revival church buildings in England Syro-Malabar Catholic church buildings Eastern Catholic cathedrals in the United Kingdom Syro-Malabar Catholic cathedrals 19th-century Roman Catholic church buildings in the United Kingdom