The History of
Our Lady of Walsingham

Parish History

          Our parish is the first in the United States to be placed under the patronage of the Blessed Mother with her ancient title, "Our Lady of Walsingham." The Virgin Mary appeared to Racheldis de Faverches, a widow who lived in Walsingham, England in the eleventh century.  There, at her request, a shrine was built containing a replica of a Holy House at Nazareth. For several centuries, of all Marian holy places, became the one most frequented by pilgrims. The road from London to the shrine in Walsingham was one of the most heavily traveled in England. During the religious turmoil  of the 16th century, the House of Mary at Walsingham and many other shrines were destroyed. In recent years, however, both Anglicans and Roman Catholics have erected shrines to Our Lady of Walsingham.

           On April 7, 1984, Bishop John L Morkovsy announced the official formation of Our Lady of Walsingham Church as an Anglican Use Roman Catholic parish within the Galveston-Houston Diocese. This was done according to the Pastoral Provision of Pope John Paul II, which was announced by the Holy See in 1980. At that time, and through this Provision, the Holy Father created the possibility that former Anglicans who had become Catholics might form parishes in which the Anglican liturgical traditions might be preserved within the Catholic Church. Also, in this same Pastoral Provision, the Holy Father announced that former Anglican priests who had become Catholics, including those who were married, might seek ordination to the Catholic priesthood.

          The Christian community which evolved into our parish actually began to meet in February 1982. It met first in homes, then later in chapels graciously provided by Bishop Morkovsky, local pastors, and a religious order. In 1987, the Holy Father approved our liturgy, the Anglican Usage of the Roman Rite, which is contained in the Book of Divine Worship, thus restoring elements of the beautiful Anglican liturgy to the Catholic Church, from which of course this liturgy originally came. Although it  is different from it in certain ways, the Catholic Anglican Use liturgy is actually part of the Roman Rite but exists as a "usage" or variation thereof. Although our parish is part of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston, the papal Pastoral Provision in the united States is under the guidance of an Ecclesiastical Delegate, The Most Reverend John Myers, Archbishop of Newark.

          In 1992, our parish erected its first permanent edifice. This building was dedicated in 1993 by Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza of the Galveston-Houston Diocese. The building now serves as our parish hall. In March 2001 we completed an outdoor shrine to Our Lady of Walsingham. The shrine is a place of prayer and worship that we hope will draw others to our faith and help strengthen our devotion to the Blessed Mother. November 2003 the first mass was celebrated in our newly built church. The architectural design is inspired from the Church's special heritage. The building was dedicated by Bishop Fiorenza on  February 14, 2004.

Over the years, we have been served by the following priests, both Father James T. Moore and Father James Ramsey, 1982-1985; Father James. T. Moore, 1985-1993; Father Bruce H. Noble, 1993-1996; and Father James T. Moore from 1996-2006. Fr. Bruce Noble has returned to serve as parish administrator.  Deacon James M. Barnett, a parishioner when the church was founded, has served in the parish as a deacon since his ordination by Bishop Fiorenza in 1987. Two of our parishioners have dedicated their lives to the priesthood. Father Wayne Flagg, now a priest of the Diocese of Victoria, entered St. Mary's Seminary as layman from Our Lady of Walsingham Parish. Parishioner.  Vic Pacheco, joined 23 other seminarians from the diocese in August of 2001 to begin his journey to the priesthood. He is now at St. Mary's Seminary in Houston.

We hope to grow and expand to meet the needs of our growing community. Plans are underway to acquire the adjacent property to develop for the benefit of the parish. 

Our parish is abundantly blessed with a laity who together pray, worship, teach and learn, to the Glory of God. With many different God-given talents, it is our hope always to serve the goal of offering back to God what He has given to us.

The Pastoral Provision
To facilitate the return of former members of the Anglican Communion, the Holy Father approved a Pastoral Provision in 1980, stipulating that such converts could return to the Catholic faith with their liturgical traditions largely intact. Our Lady of Walsingham Church was founded under said provision. It is not a geographical parish, as most other Catholic Churches; rather, it is called a "personal parish": therefore its members come from all over the surrounding area, and not just its adjacent neighborhood.