In the 19^th century, in particular the 40s and 50s, many Irish Catholics came to Wolverhampton especially from Galway, Roscommon and Mayo. As a result, the Bishop recognised the need for a new parish to meet the spiritual needs of the growing Catholic population. The name ‘St Patrick’ was chosen for the new parish, as this was most appropriate given the large percentage of Irish desiring a new church.

       So, in 1865 the Parish of St Patrick was founded and for more than a century its Parishioners worshipped at the old St Patrick’s church at the corner of Littles Lane and Carberry Street, until it was demolished when Ring Road was being built. Among the many priests serving at St Patrick’s we need to mention Canon Anthony Allport (Parish Priest of St Patrick’s for 38 years, 1964-2002, died in 2014), who presided over the building of a new Church and contributed so much to Catholic and spiritual life in Wolverhampton.

       In January 1971, Bishop Joseph Cleary laid the foundation stone for the new church, adjacent to Heath Town Park and close to New Cross Hospital, and it was solemnly blessed by Archbishop George Dwyer in March 1972. So, 50 years have passed and today, St Patrick’s Day 17^th March 2022, we give thanks to God for all the Clergy, Parishioners and Visitors, who have been coming to this church over those years to pray here and give glory to God. 

       A solemn Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated at 12noon by his Grace Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham. Among the clergy present were the former Parish Priests: Fr. Brendan Carrick (2002-2004) and Fr. Eamon Corduff (2004-2011), as well as the present Parish Priest, Fr. Dawid Piskorz OSPPE (2012 onwards). To participate in these celebrations, Fr Dawid’s superiors came from Poland: Fr Michał Lukoszek OSPPE, the Vicar General of the Pauline Fathers, together with Fr Piotr Łoza OSPPE. The local clergy from Dudley and Wolverhampton Deanery were present too, and also Mr Dowdall who was the Quantity Surveyor when the church was being built. We were blessed to have the choir from St Patrick’s Primary Academy; the children were singing during the Mass, celebrating St Patrick’s Day with us. After Mass the celebrations continued in the Parish Hall, where refreshments provided by Rakkyy’s Catering were served. 

       A big ‘thank you’ to all who have contributed in any way, either in the church or in the hall (too many to mention by name!), to our celebrations of St Patrick’s Day. We pray that our Patron Saint and Apostle of Ireland will continue to intercede for all our Parishioners and Visitors who come to this church. You can find more information on our website: https://www.stpatrickwolves.org and on our YouTube Channel (St Patrick’s Wolverhampton) where our celebrations are live-streamed. God bless! Fr Dawid Piskorz OSPPEE, Parish Priest.

MASSES FOR THE HOLY SOULS IN NOVEMBER

If you wish your deceased relatives and friends to be remembered in the Masses for the Holy Souls during November, please take one of the envelopes for this purpose from the back of the church and return it with their names to the church. The envelopes will be placed by the altar during all Masses in November. Holy Masses will be said for them on Mondays and Fridays during the month of November. There is a special commemoration table made available to place your envelopes.

CHRISTMAS - 25/12/2020

In front of a packed congregation, Father Dawid Piskorz has been inducted as Parish Priest of Saint Patrick’s, Wolverhampton, by local Dean Father Brendan McCarrick.

Following the Induction Mass, Father Piskorz, who is a member of the Order of St Paul the First Hermit said, “It was a beautiful evening here at St. Patrick’s and it was a wonderful experience having so much support from my new parishioners as well as from the people from my previous parishes and schools: St Mary and St John’s, St Teresa’s and St Joseph’s. It was truly uplifting to celebrate Mass with all of them tonight.”

“I would like to thank all those who have helped in any way for my Induction Mass - various members of the parish community, too many to mention by name - but I do thank them most sincerely.”

The ceremony proved to be very emotional for Father Piskorz as he told me just after the event. “Lots of emotions were going through my head tonight: anticipation, joy, pride, also fear, especially when my former Parish Priest Fr. Kazimierz was reading the Letter of Appointment from Archbishop Longley,” he explained.

“The Office of Parish Priest to which I am called is truly challenging because of the responsibility that I bear for the care of my parishioners. It involves celebrating the sacraments for them; nourishing them with the word of God; sharing their anxieties, sorrows and joys; caring for the sick and the dying, etc..”

“It will be especially challenging for me due to my lack of experience and young age, so I’m hanging onto hope that nothing is impossible with God. With God’s help I can do it”, he added.

by Jozef Lopuszynski