St Catherine's Church, Over Alderley

07/06/2026

Rudy, held by Eva, receives a blessing from Rev Amy. He was more keen on being blessed than the treats on offer ☺️

07/06/2026

Today during our Blessing of the Animals service, led by Rachel and Amy, we pledged to do our best to restore our relationships with creation and with one another 🌍 We asked the Lord to be our shepherd and we prayed that we might find God in every living creature 💚

During the service we heard all the ways God is likened to animals and birds and we listened to Le Cocou a wonderful musical interlude - thank you Chris 🕊️

Rev. Amy blessed 21 dogs and 2 ponies! Thank you to all the young helpers during the service.

💚 Through the love we share with animals, might we live in your kingdom here on earth as it is in heaven 🐴🐕🕊️

Diocese of Chester

04/06/2026

Check out this event hosted by our friends St Philip and St James ✨

FUND RAISER FOR HEATING PROJECT.

We look forward to welcoming Dr Catherine Coull to St Philip and St James and hearing her talk about the Magic and the Science of the stones in Alderley. Tea and Cake too.
Wednesday 17th June 2026 at 2.45pm for 3pm start..£10,payable on door or use QR code below.

04/05/2026

🦇 Bats in the Belfry…

Well not quite the “belfry” - in our case it’s bats in the tower!

Before works can commence on the Church roof, we are required to undertake a bat
survey. The initial survey was conducted on 17th April, coincidentally at the same time as Paul Hale was putting the organ through its paces in
Church.

Perhaps the bats were attracted to the prospect of a morning recital, but the ecologist found bats in the tower and some evidence of their presence within the cracks in the roof slates.

This means work on the Church roof will be delayed. There will have to be further surveys
to detect whether our bats are mere transient visitors or permanent residents.

This means that we shall not now be vacating the Church and decamping to the Reading Room. Church services will continue as normal in Church until at least the end of June. 🦇

03/05/2026

🌱 Rogation Sunday 🌽 This morning we asked for mercy on our tired land and offered prayers for those who are hungry. We prayed for good stewardship of God’s creation, that we learn to cherish the earth, and that we are guided towards a sustainable future.
We asked for blessings upon our land, livestock and community - and together with Rev Amy we marked them on a map of our parish 💚

17/04/2026

A timely find from your Monthly Messenger editor who found the original specification for our 1909 organ in a box of treasures inherited from Peter Bethell.

Peter was a lifelong supporter and congregation member of St Catherine’s, he was church warden and before that, his father was organist.

He left a legacy towards the restoration of the organ in his will and so it was fitting to come across this in the same week as the newly restored organ was played 🤍

16/04/2026

Today we had the pleasure of having Paul Hale put our organ through its paces as we near the end of our restoration project. Played here by Richard Lowe with Paul Hale and David Wells Organ Builders Limited listening from the church below, we think it sounds fantastic 😊

We enjoyed coffee and biscuits as the organ was tested and we even got to peek into the blower room under the tower.

Just a few more tweaks until it will be signed off and in as good order as it was in 1909 😊 Look out for our Grand Organ Recital with Christopher Cromar later this year 😀 In the meantime, we’ll be starting work on our next project….the roof!

08/04/2026

Last time Ray hosted a talk it was a sellout ☺️ - funds raised will go towards the church roof so another good reason to come along 😊

Illustrated Talk by Raymond Walker & Mike Gorton at the Over Alderley Reading Room with Wine & Canapés reception, Black Greyhound corner, Macclesfield Road SK10 4SN
On Friday, 17th April, at 7:15 for 7:45.
Tickets £12 (Cash paid on door) Advance ticket orders to T: 530030 as numbers are limited to 75

07/10/2025

Our friends at St Mary’s are having a harvest festival this Sunday 🌾 details below 👇

A week on Sunday is our Harvest Festival. Hurray! Our lunch is fully booked, but we'd love to see you at the service. We still need raffle prizes if you'd like to donate, either bring to church or the Rectory. See you soon!