Cathedral of St Chad
Information
Pack
Information Pack
• Thank you for visiting the Cathedral of St Chad.
• The following slides give you some further
information about the Cathedral.
• Always remember that the Cathedral is your
Church – it belongs to you, your family and your
friends and you can visit the Cathedral and attend
Mass whenever you wish.
• We hope to see you again.
The Dean
Cover photograph taken by Michael Beckwith
Facts about the Cathedral
• St Chad’s Cathedral was designed by the architect
Augustus Welby Northmoor Pugin in the Victorian Gothic style and
was consecrated and opened for worship in 1841.
• The Cathedral’s patron, St Chad, was born in Northumbria and
became a monk under St Aidan on the island of Lindisfarne. He
subsequently became the bishop of Lichfield where he became
famous for his hard work in spreading the Gospel and helping the
poor. He was a humble man who chose to travel everywhere on
foot and the story goes that Archbishop Theodore had to persuade
him to ride by lifting him bodily on to a horse. He died of the plague
in 672 and pilgrims soon began coming to his grave in Lichfield.
Eventually his bones (or relics) were transferred from the graveyard
to a magnificent tomb in Lichfield Cathedral and his shrine became
one of the great centres of pilgrimage in the Middle Ages.
• In St Edward’s Chapel there can be seen a series of windows which
depict the subsequent history of St Chad’s relics. At the
Reformation, the shrine to St Chad at Lichfield was destroyed, but a
brave priest, Fr Arthur Dudley, was able to save a few of the relics
which were kept in a separate box. Throughout the years of
persecution they wer kept hidden by various Catholic families,
including the Hodgetts brother and one of the windows depicts the
box of relics placed for safe keeping on the top of Henry Hodgetts’
four poster bed. The relics can now be found in the Cathedral, over
the High Altar.
• A statue of St Chad can be seen in the South Aisle, holding a model
of Lichfield Cathedral. He is depicted wearing a mitre and holding a
crosier, symbols of a bishop.
• Most of the windows were designed by John Hardman. A brass
monument to the Hardman family can be found in the North Aisle,
on the floor in front of the Lady Chapel, and some members of the
family are buried in the Crypt. Nearby is a monument to the bishop
responsible for building the Cathedral, Thomas Walsh. Also in the
North Aisle can be found the pulpit, from which priest used to
preach to the congregation in the past, and the font, used for
baptisms. Behind the font is the Chapel of the Oils where you can
find the chrism oil used in Confirmation and other sacraments. The
Cathedral is fortunate to also have some personal effects of Blessed
John Henry Newman.
• To one side of the Sanctuary there is a plaque commemorating
where a bomb fell through the roof in 1940.
• On the Sanctuary is the Archbishop’s chair, the Cathedra, from
which we get the word ‘cathedral’. The name of our Archbishop is
Bernard Longley.
St Chad
Prayer of St Chad
God is before us,
God is behind us,
God’s love around us,
On our right and on our left.
God there above us,
God there beneath us,
God’s might among us,
On our right and on our left.
God all about us
God deep within us
God’s peace be with us,
Today and forever.
Quiz
1.
What is the name of our Archbishop?
2.
St Chad was a bishop and the statue of him in the
Cathedral shows him wearing a bishop’s special hat.
What is this called?
3.
The statue of St Chad shows him holding something
under his left arm to show he is a bishop. What is this
called?
4.
The statue of St Chad shows him holding the model of a
building. What is the name of this building?
5.
Why is St Chad shown holding this building?
6.
What is the special word used to describe the bones of
saints, or other things that belonged to them?
7.
Where did Henry Hodgetts hide the bones of St Chad?
8.
The bones of St Chad are now kept in St Chad’s
Cathedral. Whereabouts in the Cathedral are they?
9.
In the Cathedral, what is the name of the object, like a
bath, in which babies are baptised?
10. In the Cathedral there is a big wooden box-like structure
with steps leading up to it; the priest used to preach
from here in the past. What is it called?
11. Special oil for use in Confirmation is kept in the Chapel
of Oils. What is this oil called?
12. There is a monument in the Cathedral to the bishop who
was responsible for building the Cathedral. What is his
name?
13. What is the name of the architect who designed the
Cathedral.
14. What is the name of the person who designed most of
the windows? There is a monument o his family on the
floor in front of the Lady Chapel and some members of
his family are buried in the Crypt.
15. A bomb fell on the Cathedral during the Second World
War. It happened 99 years after the Cathedral was
opened. In what year did the bomb fall?
Answers:
1. Bernard Longley.
2. A mitre.
3. A crosier.
4. Lichfield Cathedral.
5. He was bishop of Lichfield and his relics
were originally kept there.
6. Relics.
7. On the top of his four poster bed.
8. Above the High Altar.
9. The Font.
10. The Pulpit.
11. Chrism oil.
12. Thomas Walsh.
13. Augustus Welby Northmoor Pugin.
14. John Hardman.
15. 1940.
Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin
(1812-1852)
John Hardman
(1811-1867)
His Grace, Archbishop Bernard Longley
The Archbishop and Archdiocese’s coat of arms
Archbishop’s Coat-of-Arms
• The coat-of-arms is surrounded by an archbishop’s hat with
its many tassels.
• The right-hand side of the coat-of-arms is made up of
features which Archbishop Bernard has chosen himself.
There is a beehive, because the bee is a symbol of
Archbishop Bernard’s patron saint – St Bernard of Clarivaux.
St Bernard was a monk who was born in France in 1090. He
was such a good preacher and writer that people said his
words were as sweet as honey. The bee is also part of the
coat-of-arms of Manchester, where Archbishop Bernard
was born. Manchester was a great centre of industry in the
nineteenth century and the ‘busy bee’ was chosen as a
symbol of the hard work of the people of that city. Bees
also work together for the good of all the bees in the hive,
so for this reason the beehive reminds Archbishop Bernard
of unity within the Church.
• Above the beehive are three blue fleurs de lys. The fleur
de lys is a kind of lily and it is a symbol of Our Lady. It is a
reference to another of Archbishop Bernard’s patrons,
Blessed Dominic of the Mother of God. Blessed Dominic
Barberi was an Italian priest who received Blessed John
Henry Newman into the Catholic Church.
• The left-hand side of the coat-of-arms is used by all
Archbishops of Birmingham and does not change when a
new Archbishop is appointed. At the top is the cross of St
Chad. Underneath is the pallium; a special woollen band,
given to him by the Pope, which the Archbishop of
Birmingham wears around his neck. The pallium is given to
our Archbishop because he is a particularly important kind
of archbishop; called a Metropolitan.
• Underneath the coat-of-arms is Archbishop Bernard’s
motto in Latin – Ut Imi, Sint. This means ‘May they be one’
and is taken from Our Lord’s prayer that his disciples would
be united (Jn 17:11). Archbishop Bernard chose it to
emphasise the importance of unity within the Catholic
Church and amongst all Christians.