Madam,

In Catherine Pepinster’s balanced article, The Day of Reckoning for St Winefride’s, printed in the Cambrian News, Bishop Burns is quoted as saying that the use of the repaired Welsh Martyrs’ church is not necessarily a permanent solution for the Catholic parish of Aberystwyth. Historically, there has been a constant narrative of support for the St Winefride’s Queen’s Road location, starting in 2006, which saw a day of discernment held by Sister Margaret O’Connor, DHS, and chaired by the then parish priest. The outcome, which was communicated to the bishop, was overwhelming support for the Queen’s Road site of St Winefride. More recent evidence of parishioners’ support for the site followed the display of Gareth Lewis’s architect’s plan for the modernising of St Winefride’s church. This was welcomed by 93 per cent of parishioners. This was also communicated to the bishop and Menevia trustees. Details and supporting documents can be found at www.tinyurl.com/stwinefrides. As David Barratt and other structural surveyors have testified, the building of St Winefride’s is a solid one, and its reopening still a possibility.

As many former mass-attenders no longer attend mass locally, either travelling to neighbouring parishes or attending other denominational churches, there is no longer a congregation at mass which is representative of the parish as a whole. When the time comes for masses at the Welsh Martyrs’ church, many of those within its walls will be doing so, not because they have heeded the bishop’s call for reconciliation, but because they have no other choice if they wish to receive Sacraments locally.

Yours etc,

Lucy Huws,

Trinity Road, Aberystwyth.

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