ST
MARY’S CRICKLADE: Since
1984
Although
this beautiful Church contains many fine Anglican fittings its transition
to Catholic usage has necessitated the acquisition of a number of
devotional objects and other furnishings some of which are of interest.
The
Holy Water Stoup was installed by David Greaves of Dike & Sons of
Cirencester in memory of Joe O’Leary who died in 1984 shortly after the
church was re-opened. Joe had been involved in the acquisition of the
church and he constructed the wooden platform for the sanctuary. The Font
was given a new lead liner in 2001 by Cox & Hall of Tetbury.
The
Stations of the Cross were sponsored by various families in the parish
and were blessed by Fr. Eamon McGlinchey on 18th February 1986.
The
nineteenth century Statue of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception
was the gift of the Sisters of St Clotilde who ran a school at Lechlade
Manor from 1939 to 1998. It is probably French in origin. The pedestal
comes from the former Benedictine Convent at Fernham, which closed in
2002. The wrought iron votive candle stand was the gift of Christine
Spearing. The other statues in the church are of St Joseph and the Sacred
Heart of Jesus.
The
Tabernacle or Aumbry for the reservation of the Blessed Sacrament
was installed in 1990 and its brass canopy was added by Lesley Webb of
Fairford in 2000. The Altar beneath the Tabernacle was used at
Prior Park Chapel and then in the old St Augustine’s Church. The hanging
Sanctuary Lamp is made of beaten brass and was made for the Church of St
Teresa of Lisieux in Taunton when it was opened in 1959. Bill Pankhurst, a
blacksmith from Oakridge Lynch, forged the wrought iron bracket.
The
Altar Table is covered by an English oak top that was made by Den
Hatchett of the Cricklade Craft Workshop and it incorporates a marble
altar stone from the Convent at Lechlade.
The
oak Rood above the Chancel arch was carved by Patrick Conoley of
Hartpury in 1960 when he was working for R.L. Boulton & Sons of
Cheltenham. It was commissioned for the Chapel of the Annunciation at
Lechlade where it hung behind the altar until the closure of the chapel in
1998. Patrick Conoley is a sculptor with over fifty years of experience
and since 1965 he has worked as a free-lance sculptor and has completed
over 300 commissions in wood, stone and marble including a carving of St
Thomas of Canterbury at Fairford. The small wooden crucifix in the
Sanctuary was carved in Oberammagau and presented to the church by Dorothy
Foreman of Purton.
Fr.
Richard Barton