The Catholic Church in Balsall Common (continued)

For several years a Carol Service has been held on one of the Sundays before Christmas with people of all ages taking part. A custom that has come from this is for gifts to be distributed by the children and young people of the Parish to the elderly, sick, and housebound in the Parish and further afield. In 1997, for the first time, a Christmas Giving Tree appeared in the Narthex some weeks before Christmas, covered in present ‘tags’, thus helping us in our objective of making our Christmas a time of giving and thinking of others.

Since around 1943, it has been the practice of helping Father Hudson’s Society or Father Hudson’s Homes, as it was then known. House-to-house collections have been organised each year. Thanks to the many collectors a vast sum of money has been raised and sent to the Society’s headquarters in Coleshill.

For many years there was little development in Balsall Common, so the church was adequate for our needs. The parish gradually repaid the loan to the Archdiocese with Canon Patrick Smith (1967-1975) happily informing us of the final payment in 1967. In 1970 the village began to grow and planning permission was given for some of the land purchased by the Parish during the war. The Archdiocese stepped in and sold the land for £300,000, the implication being that when we wanted to build our permanent church, the money would be made available for the purpose – how wrong we were! Outline planning permission was sought and obtained for a church in the early 1970’s but not proceeded with.

In 1973 we mourned the passing and celebrated the life of our founding Parish Priest, Monsignor Bernard Manion (1941-1967). For over thirty years, and even in retirement, he had been a focal point of parish life. He was recognised as one of the finest priests in the life of our Archdiocese. We cannot do better than to quote from Bishop Anthony Emery’s homily at the funeral mass held in Dorridge.

“After leaving Cotton in 1941 and for the next 26 years Monsignor Manion was Parish Priest here in Dorridge. Those who were parishioners during his first seven years know the energy and apostolic zeal with which he gave himself to the Parish. Indeed the boundaries of the Parish could not contain his zeal and it burst through to establish very soon the Chapel and Mass Centre of St Philomena at Balsall Common.

“But after a few years in 1948, the Archbishop entrusted to him the mammoth task and responsibility for the planning and organisation of Catholic Education in the Diocese required by the Education Act of 1944. Monsignor Manion gave himself with characteristic dedication and spent himself in carrying out his new responsibilities. It was with considerable trepidation that he did so, as he confided to me later, for this was completely new ground - there were no precedents to guide him. It involved a thorough study and knowledge of the Education Act - it necessitated a detailed knowledge of the geography of the diocese - of population and its movement into new housing areas. It involved personal negotiations with 15 local education authorities and with the then Ministry of Education. To say that he burnt the midnight oil is an understatement - he turned night into day on many occasions. Our Diocese owes Monsignor Manion a debt of gratitude for the wisdom, foresight and energy he gave to the planning and provision of our Catholic School system in the decade 1950-1960. Those were crucial years in which the foundations had to be laid for the unprecedented development which took place in the 1960’s and which is still continuing to the present decade. Thank God that under His Providence Monsignor Manion was equal to the task. But you know how the work took its toll of his health and strength.”

We do indeed.

In 1985 a Parish Mission was held. Fathers Kevin O’Connell and Michael Keogh from the Catholic Missionary Society in London conducted it. A lot of work went into the preparation for it. It reaped many blessings on the entire Parish.