Steeped in history
3:20pm Tuesday 8th April 2008
BUILT before Christopher Columbus discovered America, St John's Church has been at the heart of the High Legh community for 600 years.
The Reverend Michael Cavanagh said it was all thanks to the people who have worked to keep the parish alive since the 15th century .
"To be here 600 years is quite something," he said.
"It's just wonderful that people have been supporting this church and parish for all that time and that is why we are here now.
"Our challenge today is to look back at what they did then and what we can do now to cement that legacy."
The anniversary will be marked with a new stained glass window, which will depict Jesus calling on his disciples to follow him and become fishers of men.
It is due to be unveiled at a ceremony with the Bishop of Chester on November 30.
"We definitely wanted something that would be permanent," said Michael.
"That way, in another 600 years, people can look back at what we did."
Villagers have already begun to help raise the thousands of pounds needed for the ambitious project and have also organised a year of events to commemorate the 600th anniversary.
Earlier in the year, this included a gala dinner at Victoria Stadium in Northwich and a memorial 10k run to celebrate the life of Robert Moffat.
Moffat was a gardener at High Legh House in the 18th century who went out to do good work in Africa and a little wooden cross built from his original mission can still be found in St John's Church. The church was also involved with the High Legh History Day.
Michael added: "It was good to be a part of that because we don't want to be considered separate to the community - the parish and community are different aspects of the same thing.
"But we'll also be holding an open day in the church as a specific celebration of our history in October.
"We've got all sorts of events this year and it's entirely a team effort - everyone is really pulling out the stops."
Other highlights to look out for will include a parish picnic in June and a tour of residents' gardens and a weekend of cricket in July.
Villagers have also produced a calendar with images of High Legh and hope to create a book about the history of the parish.
The first version of St John's was built in 1408 - seven years before the Battle of Agincourt between England and France.
That building lasted for hundreds of years but eventually crumbled because of neglect.
A new church was one of the many built in 1815 to celebrate the defeat of Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo.
But 79 years later during restoration work, that building accidentally caught fire and burned to the ground.
The church was rebuilt in 1895 - the year that x-rays were invented and Oscar Wilde's play The Importance of Being Earnest was first performed.
Since then, parishioners have worked hard to maintain the building in The Avenue.
"It's such a beautiful church that's been so well looked after," said Michael.
"But really the church is the people, not the building. All these people through the centuries have put the effort in and we get the benefit.
"Now we want to make sure we put the same effort in."
Six centuries on, Michael believes St John's has retained that sense of connection with the community.
"I'm 60 so I only understand a tenth of St John's history and I think the concept of 600 years can be difficult to comprehend.
"But I still feel very much we are a church for the community. It's the village church and although we are Anglican, everyone is welcome.
"When people come to High Legh, they immediately feel very welcome. It's a compact community with a strong community spirit," he added.
Michael joined the church 10 years ago and was immediately made welcome.
He said: "The community and congregation work together and are a really strong team of people who have a lot of different skills that they contribute fully."