How a battered and discoloured chalice taken from a church on the French battlefields during the war was left outside a confessional in St. John's Cathedral. Salford, in a sugar box, was told by Canon T. Sharrock, RD., at the annual meeting of the Diocesan Union of Catholic Mothers, at Belle Vuc, Manchester, on Saturday, when he presented it, now beautifully reconditioned. to the Bishop of Salford, Mgr. Thomas Renshaw. for his Lordship to dispose of it as he may think fit.
A Sugar Boi One Saturday night, a few weeks ago, said the Canon, a sugar box was placed outside one of the confessionals in the Cathedral by a man who quickly disappeared. When the box was opened it was found to contain the chalice, which was in a very battered and discoloured condition. With it was a note saying that it had been taken from a church in France during the war, and expressing the wish that it be restored to the church. The writer added that he wished the Canon to do with it what he desired but not to make much noise about it.
For Lourdes Basilica Acknowledging the gift, the Bishop said that it was a very beautiful chalice and it would be a godsend to sonic church.
He was afraid, however, that it was not within the realms of possibility to find out the church from which it had come. But there was one church in France where people from every country went and that was the Basilica church in Lourdes, so what he proposed to do was to take it with him when he led 800 pilgrims in the annual diocesan pilgrimage at the end of this month and present it to that church for the use of peoples from all nations.