Parish Newsletters
1st Sunday of Advent Year (A)
30 de noviembre de 2025
THOUGHTS FOR THIS WEEKEND
From the late Fr Geoffrey Preston OP
Dominican
To the Liturgical celebration of the coming of God to the world there belongs intrinsically Advent, the time of prophecy. For months we have had a succession of Ordinary Sundays, but then it all changes, expressed in the external change of the colour from green to purple. We have a different sort of Sunday, a Sunday with a different feel to it, a different mood and a different significance. We are not left alone. In a succession of Sunday after Sunday we are forced to change. If we are at all sensitive to these matters, we are shown time thickening up, changing depth and density. This is how the Catholic Church constantly behaves.
The Solemnity of Christ the King Year (C)
23 de noviembre de 2025
THOUGHTS FOR THIS WEEKEND
For Christ the King from the Sourcebook for Sundays and Seasons 2019.
Today is the Thirty-fourth or last Sunday in Ordinary Time and the Solemnity of Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the Universe.
This Solemnity was established by Pope Pius XI in 1925. An observance celebrating an aspect of Jesus’ identity, rather than of his life. Conventional understandings of kingship and power are utterly transformed.
33rd Sunday of the Year (C)
16 de noviembre de 2025
THOUGHTS FOR THIS WEEKEND
From the Society of St Gregory
Quite unusually, all the Readings provided for this Sunday and the general tenor of the Prayers for Mass are focussed on the Seconded Coming of Christ, a theme that will continue through into Advent. Now the apocalyptic imagery in the Gospel is matched by the prophet Malachi in the First Reading.
32nd Sunday of the Year (C)
9 de noviembre de 2025
THOUGHTS FOR THIS WEEKEND
This comes immediately after the Wedding at Cana, in Galilee.
Early in his ministry, Jesus goes up to Jerusalem for Passover. Finding the Temple full of sellers and money changers and sacrificial animals for sale, he goes through the place like a whirlwind cleaning them out.
When the authorities want to know what is going on, he gives them an answer they don’t understand.
The Parish of Haigh, Aspull & Blackrod
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception was founded in the mid 1850's and is part of the R.C. Diocese of Salford. The Church was blessed and opened in 1858, the year of the apparitions of Our Lady at Lourdes. The Church was re-ordered in the 1990's and several new stained-glass windows were installed, some made in Blackrod, and are an interesting feature of the Church.
Holy Family Parish, New Springs, was funded from Our Lady's in 1898 and in 2009 clebrated the Golden Jubilee of its Church. The community of Blackrod, Bolton, had a chapel-of-ease from 1960 to 2009 when St. Andrews Church Hall was closed.
All three areas - Haigh & Aspull, Blackrod and New Springs are now served from Our Lady's.
Rev Kevin Foulkes
48 Haigh Road
Aspull
Wigan WN2 1YA
TEL: 01942 516732
Mass Times
Saturday
Sunday
Monday
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
Saturday
6.00pm
9.30am
11.15am
9.15am
9.15am
9.15am
9.15am
9.15am
11.00am
Haigh
Haigh
Holy Family
Haigh
Holy Family
Haigh
Holy Family
Haigh
Haigh
Sacrament of Reconciliation
Saturday
11:30 - 12 noon
As announced
Haigh
Holy Family
A Parish History ~ 1858-2018
Mr Livesey & Mr West have worked with local parishioners to produce a book about the history of our parish and school, they have kindly allowed us to reproduce an electronic version of their book, available on the Parish Page, CLICK HERE to read it.
If you would like to purchase a hard copy of the book CLICK HERE
Forward...
It is a privilege and honour to write the forward to the Parish History of Our Lady’s Parish, on its 160th Anniversary.
It has also been a privilege and honour, and a pleasure, to serve as Our Lady’s Parish Priest since 1997 – following in the footsteps of my twenty-six predecessors.
Saint Peter writes ‘He is the living stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious to him; set yourselves close to him so that you too, the holy priesthood that offers the spiritual sacrifices which Jesus Christ has made acceptable to God, may be living stones making a spiritual house.’ (Peter 2:3-5)
We are the living stones of this Christian community – commissioned as ‘missionary disciples’ to be Christ’s ‘ambassadors’ (St. Paul Cor. 5:20) in loving witness, worship and service to our community.
There have been many changes over these 160 years – in the Church, Society, Education and the design of Our Lady’s Church. The priests and people of Our Lady’s Parish have experienced many joyful family and Parish celebrations but also wars, peace, poverty and economic depressions, through twelve Pontificates and six Reigns – and we too are facing a challenging time for the Catholic Church. Blessed John Henry, Cardinal Newman wrote that ‘To live is to change and to be perfect is to have changed often’.
And so, building on and celebrating our heritage – the stones of Our Lady’s Church, and the ‘living stones’ of our dedicated, faithful and often courageous priests, parishioners and teachers in our Parish School we can face the future with confidence. We do so knowing that Jesus, Our Risen Lord, has promised to be with his Church forever. (Matthew 28:20)
I commend this publication to be read and enjoyed by everyone.
Many thanks to Phil Livesey and Neil West for their initiative to begin and to bring this book to completion and to all who have collaborated with them, with their own very interesting and often amusing memories! God bless you all.
Fr Kevin C. Foulkes