OUR LADY OF LOURDES

History of New Milton The manor of Milton, then known as Mildeltune, is listed in the Domesday Book of 1086 and literally means "Middle Farm." The village centre was centred around the to Christchurch road and had a village green and two coaching inns one of which, The Wheatsheaf, still survives. The first church was built in the mid thirteenth century, just to the north of the road. Up until the 1960s moated earthworks were still visible next to the road known as Moat Lane, excavations of these in 1956 revealed a series of peasant enclosures and hut remains dating from the 9th to the 12th century.

By the mid nineteenth century there was a railway line between Southampton and Dorchester, but it wasn’t until the latter part of that century that the rising prominence of caused a line to be built from to Bournemouth, via Milton and Christchurch. The Milton station was constructed about a mile north of the village in 1886 and shortly afterwards a new sub-post office opened nearby. To avoid confusion with the existing one in the village it was named ‘New Milton Post Office’ and the railway company decided to use the same name for the new station. Some years later the name was formally adopted and New Milton came into being, the original area around the Christchurch road is now known as Old Milton. Today, New Milton has a population of around 30,000 and stretches northwards to the edge of the and south to the coast, it includes the conurbations of Ashley, Bashley and Barton-on-Sea. © OpenStreetMap Contributors

The New Forest is not really new at all. Part of an area of deciduous woodland dating back twelve thousand years, it is one of the largest remaining areas of open pasture land, heathland and forest in Southern . Situated in southwest Hampshire and southeast Wiltshire, it was claimed as a royal forest by William the Conqueror in 1079 or thereabouts and features in the Domesday Book. ‘Commoning Rights’, granted at that time for the use of pasture etc., are still recognised today and controlled by official verderers. In the 18th century the area was an important source of timber for building ships for the Royal Navy. Today it is a habitat for many rare birds, mammals and reptiles.

History of Our Lady of Lourdes After parliament outlawed the Catholic Mass in 1559, records show that there was no resident Catholic priest in the New Forest for about 200 years, although there is documented evidence of continuous Catholic activity in the area. The village of , on the Christchurch to road, was a centre for Catholic life during the 18th century, but the first parish church to be opened in the Forest was in Lymington in 1859. In 1915 the Army commandeered the Marine Hotel on Barton-on-Sea cliff top to provide a military hospital for Indian soldiers who had been injured in France. The hospital had a chapel which was open to the public for Sunday Mass, but unfortunately for local Catholics this facility ceased in 1919.

Father Bernard Morris, parish priest of Lymington, established Mass on a regular basis in New Milton in May 1924 and for 18 months Mass was celebrated once a month in the drawing room of a house called 'Little Barrs' in Fernhill Lane. From October 1925, Mass was celebrated every Sunday in The Institute at OId Milton. William Cotter, then Bishop of Portsmouth, began planning for a new church in New Milton in 1925 and Wilfrid C. Mangan, a Catholic architect from Preston in Lancashire, was commissioned to design the church. The Bishop and the architect decided on an English Gothic style, and Marchetti of Portsmouth were engaged to build it. Designed to accommodate around 160 people, the finished church had knapped flints set into the surface in a series of squares, creating a 'chequer-board' effect quintessentially typical of English chalkline architecture. Many such buildings are to be found all over Wiltshire, Berkshire and parts of Hampshire. On Sunday, 10th July 1927, Bishop Cotter celebrated a Pontifical High Mass and although there were perhaps only about 50 Catholics in the area at that time, the Church was packed to overflowing.

During the 1920s and 1930s New Milton expanded, increasing the population and affecting church numbers, so in 1935 a Church Extension Fund was started. Work finally commenced in September 1950 and was completed the following year, the enlarged church was consecrated in May 1955.

Until a few years ago a magnificent Monterey pine stood in the church grounds, thought to have been around one hundred and fifty years. A wonderful sight, it was much loved by both parishioners and local people. It proudly survived the ‘Great Storm’ of 1987 but unfortunately deteriorated in later years. When large branches began falling off in 2013 an inspection was commissioned which declared it to be in a dangerous condition and recommended it be cut down to avoid further risks. The parishioners were naturally very upset to lose such an old friend and it was decided to retain a three metre stump of the old tree to be carved out to create a grotto to Our Lady of Lourdes. The grotto is now a wonderful addition to our church and is used as a focal point for outside celebrations, the first communal Masses following the recent Covid19 lockdown were celebrated there. Our old Monterey pine is still giving service at Our Lady of Lourdes.

We continue to celebrate Mass every day, with a Vigil Mass on Saturday evening and a Mass on Sunday morning. In normal times, prior to the Covid lockdown, Masses were very well attended and swelled even further by visitors during the holiday season and bank holidays. All visitors are warmly welcomed, as are the viewers all over the world who join in our Masses via our live streaming. This was installed around five years ago, mainly to allow those parishioners unable to attend church to join in with our celebration before receiving Holy Communion in their homes from our Extraordinary Ministers of the Eucharist. Since then, it has evolved into a means of reaching out to people all around the world and in a typical month our stream is viewed by around 24,000 people in more than thirty different countries.

The Church

Crucifix The figure on the crucifix above the altar was carved by a local artist Frank Whittington, known as ‘The Forest Carver’.The inscription above the crucifix reads: ‘TE DILEXI DILECTIONE AETERNA', which translates as ‘You I Have Loved With An Eternal Love'. Words of the risen Christ addressing not only his Father in heaven but His flock individually.

Altar The altar is made of carved and polished Sicilian marble. The front panel carries gilded Alpha and Omega symbols either side of the PX (the Chi-Rho - pronounced key-row). The combination of the two Greek letters, X and P in the Chi-Rho signify the first two letters of Christ's name in Greek. There is a lectern with matching carving to the left of the Sanctuary.

Side Altars

A side altar dedicated to St. Joseph is to the left of the Sanctuary, with one dedicated to Our Lady to the right.

Imagery Our Lady of Lourdes has three interesting statues. To the left of the Sanctuary is Aaron and to the right, Melchisedech, both carved from wood and gilded, and commissioned in 1931. To the left of St. Joseph’s altar is ‘The Good Shepherd’, also carved by ‘The Forest Carver’ who carved the figure on the crucifix. It is said to be modeled on a young farm worker near Beaulieu with ‘a typical Hampshire Face!’

Aaron Melchisidech The Good Shepherd Baptismal Font The Baptismal Font, presided over by a carving of St. John the Baptist

Wall Plaques

These plaques were made at the Della Robbia ceramic factory, founded in 1894 in Birkenhead, near Liverpool. The name was apparently taken from the famous family workshop founded by Luca della Robbia in 15th-century Florence, which specialised in large coloured reliefs installed on walls. Some of the Birkenhead pieces closely imitated this style while others reflected the more general style of Italian pottery. The Della Robbia pottery was established as a true Arts & Crafts pottery on the lines advocated by William Morris using local labour and raw materials. It closed in 1906.

A Relic of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska

Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska of the Blessed Sacrament was born north- west of Lódz in Poland on August 25 1905, the third of 10 children to a poor but religious family. She joined the Congregation of the Sisters of Our Lady of Mercy in Warsaw as a housekeeper, taking her first religious vows as a nun in 1928 and adopting the religious name of Sister Maria Faustina of the Blessed Sacrament. In 1931, Jesus presented himself to her as the "King of Divine Mercy", wearing a white garment with red and pale rays coming from his heart. He asked her to become the apostle and secretary of God's mercy, a model of how to be merciful to others. The Relic is displayed to the right of the Sanctuary, immediately below an image of the Sacred Heart.

Organ

The organ was dedicated on Friday, 16th May 1986. Built by Peter Collins of Redbourn, it has two manuals and pedal. The pipes are placed within an oak case, which blends and projects the sounds. AII the pipes except for the pedal stop, at the back of the organ, and the Open Dispason which stands proudly in front of the organ, are enclosed in a swell box allowing a great range of dynamic flexibility in accompanying. Over the pipes are rich carvings which help to blend the sounds of the pipes, and above the towers are carved the words 'Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus and Agnus', a reminder that the organ is there to lead and express both prayer and praise.

Grotto

Created within the stump of our old Monterey Pine tree, the Grotto is a focal point for outdoor worship and we currently celebrate Mass here each Sunday afternoon, weather permitting.

Prayers Said After Mass

For the Renewal of Our Diocese O sacred heart of Jesus, we beg you to change us, to convert us and to make us holy. Fill us with a deeper faith, hope and love for you. Send into our hearts the cleansing fire of the Holy Spirit and powerfully renew all the clergy, religious and laity of our diocese. Unite us in love and respect for one another and unify us as your one, holy people. Grant us a new passion and zeal for the Catholic faith, for mission, outreach and service. Help us to proclaim your gospel generously to the poor and needy that many more souls may be saved by finding their way to you in your church. May Mary Immaculate help us, may St. Edmund of Abingdon and Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati pray for us. Amen.

Saint Michael the Archangel St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle. Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May god rebuke him, we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God cast into hell atan and all evil spirits who wander through the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen