The Bishop of Salisbury, Rt. Rev’d Nicholas Holtam consecrated an extension to the churchyard at St Philip and St James’ Church in Chapmanslade on Saturday 22nd September.
The Bishop said that in his seven years in Salisbury, it was only the third churchyard extension he had consecrated. He prefaced his remarks by quoting from the words of Jesus: ‘I am the resurrection and the life, those who believe in me, even though they die, yet shall they live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die’. The Bishop went on to speak of honouring the dead by having them buried in the centre of the community, close by and united with their friends and loved ones.
After a brief service in the church the congregation followed the Bishop, the Priest in charge of the Parish, Rev’d Pauline Reid, and the two churchwardens, Ian Buick and John Helliar, to the area of the extension behind the church. The Bishop, with his crook, marked each corner of the ground with the sign of the cross.
The planning application for this extension was first submitted to Wiltshire Council three years ago. Getting approval has been a major task, for which the parish are greatly indebted to Ian Buick. After drawing up the plans, Ian has progressed the application through the legal process, with the Diocese and the Land Registry, as well as getting the final environmental approval from Wiltshire Council. The one and only previous consecration at Chapmanslade was 150 years ago.
