Opening of the First Church
This is the article from the Central Somerset Gazette for Dec 1926
Historic Event at Glastonbury - R.C. Church After 387 Years
Abbot Whiting - Father F. Burdett
There is a wide gap between these two names in time and importance. It was on Nov 15th 1539, that the last Abbot of Glastonbury was martyred on Chalice Hill at the foot of the Tor, within view of the Abbey over which he had ruled too well that even the Commissioners charged to discover any faults with the place had to return disappointed from their quest, and that last a charge was formulated against the Abbot of robbing his own Abbey.
On Sunday last, December 5th, 1926, Mass was again said in a church under the control of the Roman Catholic Diocesan Bishop for the first time since the Dissolution of the great Abbey, in the cradle of British Christianity. From time to time there have been services conducted in private chapels in the town, notably at that of monks who formerly occupied Chalice Well, and latterly at the private chapel of the sisters in St. Louis Convent, Magdalene Street. These, however, have not been recognised churches under the control of the Bishop.
Burdett Madonna
In 1928, Father Francis Burdett of St Mary's church, commissioned Eric Gill to carve a 75cm high statue of Madonna and Child out of Portland stone for a niche on the outside of the west wall of the old church.
In 1927, Christopher Hollis, who was born in Wells, wrote a book about Glastonbury entitled “Glastonbury and England”, and it was dedicated to Father Burdett.
Following the demolition of the former church in 1938, the statue was placed in the convent garden. In 1940 it was purchased by a Cambridge Don, Mr William Mortlock, (1880-1950), who used it as a memorial on his wife Florence's (1888-1940) grave in Glastonbury cemetery.
Here it remained until 1982, when it was rediscovered and found to be by the famous sculptor and returned to St Mary's church. In 2003 it was recognised as a valuable Eric Gill statue and it was moved to a secure vault in Bristol. A half size copy was made by Garnesh Bhatt and is now located in Chalice Well gardens in Glastonbury.
In March 2011, the Eric Gill statue of Madonna and child returned to Glastonbury, and was on display in the visitor centre of Glastonbury Abbey for ten years before being returned to secure storage with the Diocese of Clifton in 2022.
Opening of the Present Church
OPENING OF ST MARY'S CHURCH, 2ND JULY 1940
On the 2nd July 1940, the newly built church of St Mary's and the presbytery opened. Over 700 people attended the service; with the church only seating 300, many had to hear the service outside. Fr Michael Fitzpatrick was the priest who worked tirelessly to raise the money to see the church built. The total cost was £11,000, with over £900 being raised by the parishioners themselves. Work started on the church in 1939, and although World War II commenced that year, the church building work went on.
A couple of weeks after the official opening, a party for the parishioners was held at the Drill Hall in Glastonbury. Here, Fr Michael was thanked for all his hard work in raising the money for the church and he was presented with furniture for his new home. Also, various items were presented to the church, including the altar and stained glass window in the Lady chapel in memory of the late Miss D'Abreu (former boarder in the convent). The window in the Sacred Heart chapel was donated by Mr Gilmer, a jeweller from Bath. At this party, Fr Michael hoped that all the debts would be cleared on the church by the end of 1941, in fact they were cleared by July 1941, when the church was consecrated.
CONSECRATION OF ST MARY'S CHURCH, 2ND JULY 1941
The service took place a year after the church was opened. It was led by Bishop of Clifton, Rt. Rev William Lee. The church was empty, even the benches were removed. The church was blessed with holy water and holy oil. Then everyone was admitted. The procession of the relics then took place. Relics of saints were placed in the altars. Those of St Thomas of Canterbury, St Innocentius and St Benedict were placed in the High Altar. Sts. Victoria and Barbara in the Lady Altar and Sts Innocentius and Clement in the Sacred Heart Altar. In addition, a special relic of Blessed Oliver Plunkett, was deposited in each of the reliquaries. Glastonbury's church is thus the only one having in all its altars a relic of this Martyr. The Mass of the Dedication of a Church followed.
Parish Priests
Fr Francis Burdett, 1926 - 1928
He was the first parish priest at St Mary's. He was responsible for the building of the first St Mary's Church in December 1926. In 1928, Father Francis Burdett commissioned Eric Gill to carve a 75cm high statue of Madonna and Child out of Portland stone for a niche on the outside of the west wall of the old church. In 1927, Christopher Hollis, who was born in Wells, wrote a book about Glastonbury entitled “Glastonbury and England”, and it was dedicated to Father Burdett.
FR DOMINIC FINDLAY-WILSON 2022 - PRESENT
His home is Salisbury in Wiltshire. He studied science at University College of Wales in Aberystwyth and ran a business with his brother for 13 years. He studied for the priesthood in Rome and Guildford and was ordained on 27 July 2014. He came to St Mary’s in 2022 from the English Martyrs Church in Chard and is also Dean for the Glastonbury Deanery.