Lancashire churches lead the way

Father Tony Bartlett is convinced in the Christian ethos of healing

Who was it who sang Lancashire Leads The Way? I think it was either the Fivepenny Piece or the Houghton Weavers, it was certainly one of those nice folk groups that do a great line in pint pots and Sirdar sweaters!

Well, this week Chris Chivers, the Canon Chancellor at Blackburn Cathedral called into the programme to prove this county does lead the way! Canon Chris, along with Anjum Anwar, the Dialogue Development Officer at the Cathedral, was en-route for Manchester Airport where they were about to fly to Bosnia.

They flew to a Christian Muslim conference in Tuzia where they will illustrate their unique model of Christian Muslim co-operation at the conference and they have taken with them some Blackburn Rovers football shirts which will be given to local Bosnian children. Some of those shirts have been worn by the players.

Also this week, I went to St. Anne's Church in Blackpool where they were preparing for a visit from the Bishop of Blackburn who was helping them celebrate their 50th anniversary.

They are a church with a big healing ministry and their Father Tony Bartlett, who uses a wheelchair, told me how he is totally convinced in the Christian ethos of healing.

Tony said these beliefs have helped him come to terms with his own disability and that we shouldn't just look for the physical aspects of healing, there is also a spiritual healing that helps us understand more about why we become ill or injured.

Reverend Simon Hunt has asked his congregation to get creative!

Divvy up

It's been a big week for Christians in north Lancashire, in fact make that the north of England. I was talking to my colleague, north Lancashire reporter Tim Padfield, who covered the remarkable scenes of the thousands of people filing past the relics of St. Thérèse of Lisieux at Lancaster Cathedral. He was telling us that some people had travelled several hours to be there and their devotion and respect was moving.

Sometimes we talk about faith buildings on the programme and it can be to say they are half empty!

Well, that can be a stereotypical view and it is certainly not a problem at All Saints in Higher Walton where they are needing to raise well in excess of £100,000 to either expand the upper reaches of the church or to build a new church hall.

In a sort of Dragons' Den approach to church finances, their vicar the Reverend Simon Hunt, has given 50 people, £5 each to see how they can get the money to work for the church. It turns out the congregation have shown the type of creativity that would make Theo Paphitis proud and today is the day they divvy up for the first time.

Simon Hunt has become a baker taking regular orders from people in the village and now having expanded his operation to include no less than three bread making machines. There have been some interesting schemes launched including eleven of the group who pooled their fivers to hire a theatre company and their performances have turned those eleven fivers into nearly £1,000.

Which kind of brings us back to where we started because I have now learned it was The Fivepenny Piece who sang Lancashire Leads The Way. Now there's a thought, multiplying The Fivepenny Piece!

Joe Wilson

Joe presents the faith programme on BBC Radio Lancashire from 6am each Sunday.