The Fraternity at Warrington , by Abbé Armand de Malleray, Rector of St. Mary's Church in Warrington

Few traditional mass centers have started without a core of parishioners willing to pray in the traditional form. Yet this is what happened in Sainte Marie de Warrington, a medium-sized town located between Liverpool and Manchester, in the northwest of England. The Benedictine monks of Ampleforth Abbey had built this large and beautiful neo-Gothic church in 1870. But for lack of vocations they had to entrust Saint Mary to the diocese which, for the same reason, soon had only one alternative. : closure or Fraternité Saint-Pierre. One could thus summarize the choice offered by the Archbishop of Liverpool to his flock: Eleison or Morrison (Morrison is the English equivalent of Leclerc supermarkets). Rather than let their beautiful church become a shopping center (or an indoor climbing center as happened for another church in the city), the faithful decided to try the Mass in Latin. In 2015, the Priestly Fraternity of Saint Peter was therefore invited to take over the management of this church.

In this majestic architectural setting, we were able to unfold the traditional liturgy and ministry without the slightest hindrance. As all the buildings belong to us, and with the approval of the local archbishop, the entire ministry is carried out according to the liturgical and disciplinary traditions described in the Constitutions of the FSSP. Before our arrival, and in the first months, several meetings allowed parishioners to ask questions to which our priests answered, explaining the theological and spiritual reasons for Latin, the posture of the priest turned towards God, the absence of lay ministers of Holy Communion etc. About three quarters of the community remained. Since then, many other devotees have arrived. For many, the first Holy Week in 2016 was a revelation. Other parishioners said they discovered the significance of the sacred architecture, converging on the tabernacle, when the vast platform with table installed in the middle of the nave in the 1970s was removed and the high altar rebuilt. After about 50 years of interruption, we have restored the Corpus Christi procession of Saint Mary to a nearby church. All Catholics in the city and elsewhere are invited. We bought a large adjacent building to make a small school and a large parish hall. About 40 people attend Holy Mass each weekday and 240 on Sundays. The priests absolve about 85 penitents a week and give plenty of time for spiritual direction.

The Archbishop of Liverpool has given us unwavering support. Twice he ordained our priests in our church. He was the first English bishop to ordain in the traditional form since 1970. Each year he confers the Sacrament of Confirmation. Without however sharing the point of view of our Fraternity on a certain number of pastoral and dogmatic questions, our Archbishop is happy to see a community of faithful growing in a serene way. While burying far more priests than he ordains, and closing churches instead of building them, the pastor of this archdiocese generously supports our little community because of the manifest fruits God is producing in it. Every year converts join the Church, young people marry and others embrace the consecrated life. The faithful often pray for vocations, either during votive Masses for Vocations, or according to the Prayer of the Confraternity of Saint Peter. Their clergy remind them that their prayers and their sacrifices are essential to obtain from God the priests of tomorrow, making it possible to offer other parishes the opportunity for a saving rebound like that of Saint Mary of Warrington. O God, give us many holy priests!