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VICAR : Revd. Paul Hinton READERS: Mrs. Fran Ellis
St. Hilda’s Vicarage Mrs. Connie Jinks
Abbey Road Dr. Martin Hadlington
Warley
West Midlands B67 5NQ
Tele: 0121 429 1384
Email: vicar@sainthildawarleywoods.co.uk
CHURCHWARDENS: Mr. Peter Harris
Mr. David Dyke
SERVICES: 1st & 3rd Sundays: 8am Holy Communion
10.30am Parish Communion (2nd Sunday Parade Service)
4th Sunday - Holy Baptism and Morning Worship followed at 11.45am by Holy Communion(Said)
6.30pm Evensong (2nd Sunday Holy Communion with Prayers for Healing)
4th Sunday - Alternative Worship
Wednesday: 1st Wednesday- Morning Prayer 2nd Wednesday- Holy Communion
3rd Wednesday- Morning Prayer 4th Wednesday- Holy Communion
5th Wednesday- Morning Prayer
PATRON SAINT: Hilda Abbess of Whitby
Saint Hilda, or Hild, to give her the correct Anglo Saxon name, meaning battle, was born in 614 AD into the
Royal House of Northumbria. Hilda herself became a ruler of both men and women in the monastery she
founded at Whitby, which became a great centre of English learning and literature. Caedmon, the first
English poet, was a labourer there.No fewer than five of her monks became bishops. The Church in England
was at that time torn by division over the differences between the traditions of the Celts whose missionaries
had brought the gospel to the North and West of England, and the Roman practices introduced in the South
and East by missionaries from continental Europe.
One particular problem was the inconsistency of the two traditions over determining the date of
Easter. A special Synod was held at Whitby in 664 to settle the matter. The supporters of the newer Roman
custom eventually won. Hilda herself, who personally much preferred the Celtic tradition, in which she
had grown up, nevertheless used her moderating influence to persuade those who had lost the argument,
to accept their defeat gracefully and to live peaceably with those from whom they had differed. Her role as
peacemaker at a pivotal time in the history of the Church in England has a lot to teach us today.
Hilda died in 680 AD and it is thought she was buried in Whitby. A 12th century chronicle tells us
that Edmund 1st in 944, had the bones of Hilda, together with those of Bishop Aidan, taken to Glastonbury,
where he himself was to be buried. Is this is where they are now?
HISTORY: The first church in Rathbone Road, started out as a ‘Parochial Hall to be furnished for church
purposes.’ The foundation stone was laid on October 29th 1906, and it was dedicated by the
Lord Bishop of Birmingham, Dr. Charles Gore on January 26th 1907.
Why or when St. Hilda, Abbess of Whitby, was chosen as the Patron Saint remains a mystery.
Was the choice arbitrary, or was it a reflection on the views of the early parishioners on the
place of women in the church?
In 1937, a new site was purchased higher up Abbey Road. The foundation stone for the new
Church was laid on November 5th, 1938. By October 1939, the fabric of the church was
Completed, and in 1940 the parish boundaries were altered by Royal Order, which brought the
new church into the centre of the parish. The new church was consecrated on June 29th, 1940
By the Bishop of Birmingham, Dr. E.W. Barnes.
To celebrate St. Hilda’s Silver Jubilee in 1965, a Lady Chapel was created and dedicated to
St. Katherine by the Bishop of Aston. In 1995, a new entrance to the church was built, and was
dedicated by Bishop Mark Santer.
St. Hilda’s Diamond Jubilee was celebrated in the year 2000, when a June 25th the Anniversary
Eucharist took place. The Celebrant and preacher was Rt. Revd. Tom Butler, Bishop of
Southwark. After the service, a yew tree was planted to commemorate the Diamond Jubilee
and the Millennium.
For a detailed history, go to St. Hilda’s website at:- www.sainthildawarleywoods.co.uk



Bishops’ Centenary
Pilgrimage
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