A Day in the Life ...
............................ of a Parish Priest

Fr Andrew Stringfellow

Father Andrew Stringfellow
is the parish priest for Sacred Heart and St Francis, Gorton. [email]

Other than priority time set aside for prayer, Mass and exercise it would be impossible for me like any other to really say what a day in the life of a priest is like. Part of what makes priestly ministry so exciting is the diversity of each day. We plan as best we can, we make timetables, and organise the week ahead but real life and real human needs have an incredible way of breaking through my sometimes all too neat ideas of what priestly ministry is all about. Every day there are reminders that I'm here to build God's kingdom not my own. However there remains one day in the week that is on the whole unchanging. It's a very important day for me and for the people I serve: My day off!

At seminary we were told repeatedly about the importance of having a day off. I was fortunate that when I was ordained my first parish priest sang from the same hymn sheet. He would often say "The day off is not just for you, taking it is for your friends too, if you don't take it their day off is ruined." I've found that to be true over the last 7 years. Now that I'm a parish priest it's become even more essential not to become isolated from other priests, my priest friends are becoming more and more important to me especially as there are less and less of us.

After Sunday Mass here we have tea and coffee in the hall and then most weeks there will be a baptism and then a couple of home visits. After that I'll review the previous week and take a look at the week ahead and make sure I'm as prepared for the next week as is possible so that my head is clear. Then it's off to the gym, Sunday is the one day I don't have to rush and can take a bit longer over things, usually I can lose myself in a match on one of the screens as I exercise. It's great to feel yourself beginning to unwind, and the mind beginning to clear after another busy week.

On Sunday afternoons my family usually get together at my mum's or one of my brother's houses. We're fortunate in Salford diocese that we're usually no more than an hour from home and I'm very fortunate that Royton where my family are is only 20 minutes from Gorton. It's great to have somewhere in life where I'm not the leader, not looked to for the answers. As soon as I'm through the door I'm just Andrew, the youngest in the family. My family have always been very supportive of my ministry and play an important part in reminding me where I'm from. They help to keep me grounded in reality. A healthy relationship with family keeps us human. Families should tell us if we're beginning to sound like a Dalek.

In the evening I head down the road to Castleton to one of my closest priest friends Mark Harold. Sunday nights have become a bit of a ritual for us. We meet up and head out to the nearby curry house and over a few beers and some good food we unwind, catch up, share stories and laugh lots. We're even so well in with the lads who work in the restaurant that after the meal we play pool in the staff room with them.

After a good night's sleep and some breakfast we head off to the golf course to meet up with Chris Gorton the parish priest of Holy Saviour's, Nelson. There are usually a few other clergy around and we all catch up on news from around the Diocese. Chris, Mark and I play a round together every week and the golf is always secondary to the friendship, the banter and the endless laughter. We all love being priests and we love sharing stories about our week. We encourage each other, we challenge each other and we help each other maintain a healthy, human attitude to life and ministry. Our friendship has become a sustaining and life giving gift. We prevent each other becoming too serious and we support each other through tough times.

After golf we enjoy a meal together and then meet up at the cinema with another friend Fr. Robin Colpman. The cinema ends our day together and we head off in different directions, rested, encouraged and uplifted. The day off provides opportunities for rest and imagination, the chance to hear what others are doing in their parishes, the opportunity to ask advice, and much, much laughter. Most of all the day off provides an opportunity to deepen the bonds of friendship and brotherhood so essential for the priesthood to flourish. We all run the risk of becoming isolated, or believing that we're too busy, too indispensable to have a day off. The day off though keeps me fresh and enthusiastic. The day off reminds me that I am not alone is this wonderful ministry.

Article date: April 2008 ...