St Joseph's Catholic Church, Tatton Street, Stockport has been designated as the new Eucharistic Shrine for the diocese of Shrewsbury. This initiative corresponds with a request made by the Congregation for the Clergy on the 8th of December 2007. On that date, a letter was sent out to bishops all over the world asking for a new spiritual movement of prayer, sacrifice, and intercession for the purification and renewal of the sacred priesthood.
The letter made two requests:
"Each diocese appoint a priest who will devote himself full time - as far as possible - to the specific ministry of promoting Eucharistic adoration and coordinating this important service in the diocese. Dedicating himself generously to this ministry, this priest will be able to live this particular dimension of liturgical, theological, spiritual and pastoral life, possibly in a place specifically set aside for this purpose by the bishop himself, where the faithful will benefit from perpetual Eucharistic adoration." (Congregation for the Clergy, Explanatory Note on Praying for Priests)
"Come to Me all you who labour and are overburdened, and I will give you rest." (Matthew 11:28)
During Holy Mass on October 22nd 2022, Bishop Mark Davies (Bishop of Shrewsbury) celebrated the beginning of this new mission for the beautiful church of St Joseph. In addition to its traditional role as a town centre parish, the church is entrusted with the task of praying perpetually before the Lord in His Sacrament of Love for an abundance of holy vocations to the priesthood, as well as for the sanctification of all our priests.
In order to have prolonged exposition of the Blessed Sacrament we need a sufficient number of adorers.
If you would be willing to commit to spending one hour per week with Jesus please email us: stockportshrine@gmail.com.
"The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest." (Luke 10:2)
| Monday - Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mass | 12pm | 5pm | 11:30am |
| Eucharistic Adoration | 7am - 7pm, Benediction 6.45pm | ||
| Confessions | 11am - 11:45am, 6pm - 6:30pm | 4pm - 4:45pm | 10:30am - 11am |
| Rosary for Vocations | 6:30pm | 11am |
St Joseph's is in great need of financial assistance. As can be observed when one visits the church, there is a lot of work which needs to be done. Following a grant award from The Albert Gubay Foundation and many generous donations from our Benefactors, work has now begun on the first phase of restoration, which is to repair the high roof of the church. A further grant award has allowed us to fix the heating system.
We are continuing to fundraise to enable us to repair the lower roofs before we can finally begin the interior restoration of the church, once all the external repairs have been completed. Your generous donations will also assist us with ongoing and rising costs of running and maintaining the church and presbytery.
The best way to support us financially would be to set up a
small monthly standing order. This ongoing assistance will allow us to get a better idea of
what projects may realistically be undertaken, so that our beloved church may be restored to its
original splendour. If you would like to make a one-off donation, that would also be very welcome.
If you are a UK Tax Payer and able to Gift Aid your One-off Donation please fill in the Gift Aid Declaration and return to stockportshrine@gmail.com.
For overseas donations please use:
Account name: SRCDT St Joseph Stockport
Account number: 54672068
Sort code: 30-15-52
BIC (SWIFT): LOYDGB21240
IBAN: GB52 LOYD 3015 5254 6720 68
The scaffolding is now up and so work can begin on the new roof. In order to help raise more funds towards the cost of this and future works, we are offering the chance to Sponsor a Slate. For a suggested minimum donation of £20 you can sponsor a slate. Perhaps you would like to:
If you would like to sponsor a slate, please write your sentiment in block capitals on the form (max 25 words) and email it back to us. Donations can be made online, by cheque or by cash. Please complete one sheet per slate. Your sentiment will be written on the slate on your behalf. The names of all slate sponsors will be recorded in a dedicated Book of Thanks and your intentions will also be remembered during our weekly Mass for all our Benefactors. Thank you for your ongoing support and generosity.
"Through adoration, the Christian mysteriously contributes to the radical transformation of the world and to the sowing of the gospel. Anyone who prays to the Saviour draws the whole world with him and raises it to God. Those who stand before the Lord are therefore fulfilling an eminent service. They are presenting to Christ all those who do not know Him or are far from Him; they keep watch in His presence on their behalf." (Saint John Paul II, Letter to the Bishop of Liege)
