Our Lady & St. Wilfrid and St. Cuthbert RC Church

Our Diocese & History...

Hexham and Newcastle Diocese

Hexham and Newcastle Diocese comprises the counties of Northumberland, Tyne and Wear, Durham and that part of Cleveland North of the River Tees. Our Diocese is a large Diocese and it is divided into five Pastoral Areas. Some of our Parishes are clustered into Parish Clusters or "families" and are served by a Team Ministry.

Our Patrons are Our Blessed Lady Immaculate and St Cuthbert.

Our Diocece Administrator is Canon Seamus Cunningham, until suchtime as the Holy Father appoints a new Diocese Bishop.

Some of the famous places in our Diocese include Holy Island or LIndisfarne, the Angel of the North, the Penshaw Monument and the Tyne and Millennium Bridges.

Our Diocesan Cathedral, St Mary's Cathedral in Newcastle, is a Grade I listed building designed by Augustus Welby Pugin.

On one side of our Diocese is a beautiful coastline. We have many important sea ports, and the Apostleship of the Sea is very active in our Diocese in its ministry to seafarers.

Each year we have a Diocesan Pilgrimage to Lourdes which is always an important and memorable Diocesan occasion.

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About the life of St. Cuthbert

St Cuthbert is the patron of our diocese. He was born about 634 and legend tells us that as a boy he used to tend sheep on the mountain-sides near the monastery of Melrose and in the year 651, while watching his sheep, he saw in a vision the soul of St. Aidan carried to heaven by angels, and inspired by this became a monk.

Eventually he became prior at Lindisfarne where he spent much time in evangelizing the local people.

He wanted more solitude and time for contemplation so went for a short while first to either St Cuthbert's Isle (off Holy Island) or as some biographers suggest St Cuthbert's Cave in Northumberland.Eventually he moved to the Inner Farne, where he lived in solitude and peace for a while.

St Cuthbert's Isle off Lindisfarne

While St Cuthbert was on St Cuthbert's Isle he would pray for long times at night on the shores of the sea in all weathers and seasons.The sea otters would come and sit at his feet warming them in the freezing North Eastern weather. He is well known for conversing with the local ducks who would flock around him. He also made rosaries from the fossil crinoids washed up on the sea shore. To this day these crinoids (still washed up locally) are known as St Cuthbert's Beads.

He is recognised as one of the world's earliest wildlife conservationists and the Eider Duck is known locally as the Cuddy Duck or Cuthbert Duck in his memory.

Eventually he left Holy Island and the Inner Farne when he was called back to active service as Bishop of Hexham in 684. He returned to Inner Farne and died there on 20 March, 687.

St. Cuthbert was buried in his monastery at Lindisfarne, and his tomb immediately became celebrated for remarkable miracles. After his death, the Lindisfarne Gospels were written in his honour.

When the Vikings destroyed Lindisfarne in 875, his remains were removed and finally laid in a Saxon church in Durham in 995. The magnificent Durham Cathedral was built on the Saxon site and his tomb may still be seen there.

A new St Cuthbert's Way long distance footpath connects Melrose to Holy Island.

St Cuthbert's feast is kept on the 20th of March.

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