Under the leadership of Bishop John Arnold, a number of parishes in the Diocese of Salford were amalgamated and it was decided to combine St Luke’s and Ss Peter & Paul’s. The parishioners were consulted on various aspects including the name and the boundaries. The combined boundary was simply the 2 parishes combined with no changes with neighbouring parishes.
The presentation of our proposed amalgamation was made to the Presbyteral Council followed by a quick decision by Bishop John Arnold. Consequently the new parish came into existence on Thursday 29 November 2018, under the title Our Lady of Hope.
Whilst there is evidence of this title being used earlier, it is a title of Our Lady which is most associated with her appearance to several young children in Pontmain, France on 17 January 1871. They described a beautiful woman smiling at them, wearing a blue gown covered with golden stars and a black veil under a golden crown. They saw a banner unfurl beneath the lady with the message: “But pray, my children. God will hear you in time. My Son allows Himself to be touched.” and this was seen as a sign of hope at the height of the Franco-Prussian War. The apparitions were given Church approval and recognition by the local bishop in February 1872 and devotion to Our Lady of Hope of Pontmain. The final approval by the Holy See for the apparitions of Our Lady of Hope was given in 1932 during the pontificate of Pope Pius XI by Eugenio Cardinal Pacelli who later became Pope Pius XII
