BRADFORD CATHEDRAL
1 Stott Hill, Bradford, BD1 4EH
Normal opening times are: Mon-Sat 8.30am-4.30pm. Sundays - open for services only
Contact: Chris Aldred, Administrator
01274 777726
chris.aldred@bradfordcathedral.org
Welcome to Bradford’s beautiful Cathedral which has inspired thousands of people for over 1300 years. Many people who visit this beautiful holy place write in our visitors’ book that it has a special atmosphere, peaceful, welcoming and friendly. We hope this is what you will also find and that this trail helps you discover some of its story and meaning, as you look at its treasures. Hidden now in the heart of a busy city, this ancient church is a jewel worth discovering.
Christians believe in Jesus as the Son of God using ways of worship based on the Jewish prayers which Jesus and his followers used. This worship is offered to God freely by us and it reminds us that we depend on God for our existence. As one of the prayers we use in the Cathedral says, ‘worship is our duty and our joy’. At the heart of the Cathedral is the commitment to daily worship - offered on behalf of everyone, not only those who take part. It is a form of work, of ‘service’, and was called by the medieval monks ‘the work of God’. For over a thousand years Christians have worshipped God on the site of the Cathedral. Saying or singing the psalms, the ancient hymns of the Jewish people, has always been at the heart of daily worship, together with prayer and Bible readings.
Bradford Cathedral is open from 9am-4.30pm, Mondays to Saturdays, and for services only on Sundays. For information, please contact the Cathedral Office on 01274 777720, or email info@bradfordcathedral.org.
The Nave
This historic building tells two kinds of story – the Christian story, and the Bradford story. The body of the church, or nave, is 550 years old, with beautiful roof timber from Tong Forest. The centre aisle leads to the C20th Chancel and Sanctuary, which is the holiest part of the church. The stones all around tell stories of Bradford people, who have worshipped God on this site, in everyday services, and those which celebrate and commemorate the landmarks of life – as well as times of civic, regional and international importance.
The Font
The Font is placed at the crossing place of three ways of entrance into the Cathedral, to symbolise entry into the Christian Faith through the sacrament of Baptism. New Christians are washed, or immersed, in the love of God, forgiven and made new in Christ, and received into the family of the Christian Church.
The stone basin is Victorian, and carries eight carvings of Christian symbols. The beautiful carved wooden canopy dates from 1543, during the reign of King Henry VIII.
The World War 1 Memorial Window
This window tells part of Bradford’s story in an international context, as it commemorates local regiments in the First World War and is full of closely observed detail. Many thousands of local boys and men are remembered here and their story passed forward to future generations to guard well the peace of the world. A cathedral is a place where the past is remembered with thanksgiving, the present is celebrated and future is anticipated with hope.
In the centre panel, the dying soldier looks to Christ who first said ‘Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends’. Christians are taught to love God above anything, and to love their neighbour as themselves.
The Peace Chapel windows
This chapel was set up by request from people wanting a special place to pray for the peace of the world, between nations and neighbourhoods, and to remember all those whose peace has been destroyed, by disaster, famine, disease and poverty.
The Kemp and Tower windows in this chapel tell three key stories of the life of Christ, as told in the Bible, and which have become special festivals and seasons in the Christian calendar. They feature, on the left, the birth of Christ. He was shown to the world, in the persons of the Wise Men, who travelled far to find him and brought symbolic gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. (This recalls our Christmas and Epiphany seasons). The middle window shows the death of Christ, at the hands of Roman and Jewish powers, on what is called ‘Good Friday’. Christians believe that the death of Jesus shows the great love and forgiveness of God, to human-kind. The third (right hand) Easter window, shows that Christians believe that God brought Christ again from the dead, and that he lives forever.
The Anglo-Saxon Stone
This fragment of carved stone is taken from a stone cross which stood on the site of the present Cathedral over a thousand years ago, marking this as a site of Christian worship, which has continued ever since.
The Chancel and Sanctuary
As Christians sit in the main body of the church they look towards the Chancel from where the Choir lead the singing. Beyond that is the Sanctuary; here the priest re-enacts the words and actions of Jesus when he shared the Last Supper with his friends symbolizing the significance of his sacrificial death which was imminent.
This area is rich in symbolism – not least the suspended gold cross, and light, a symbol of Christ. The statues on the wall are (left): St Peter the fisherman with nets and keys of heaven; St Paul with book (New Testament containing his letters to churches) and on the Bishop’s throne canopy – St Peter the fisherman.
The Organ and Choir
Music plays an important role in Christian worship. There is a large and thriving Choir of boys, girls, and adults. Bradford Cathedral choristers (8 – 16 years) are drawn from schools all over the city. Within our worship there is a rich heritage of Cathedral music to explore and enjoy. In addition, the music of many cultures and traditions expressing the vitality of this immensely varied city are often featured here in concerts, recitals and cultural gatherings
The Chapel of the Holy Spirit
This pilgrim chapel exists for private prayer. There are no services held here, but there are many forms of prayer – silent reflection, with or without words, written prayer, and prayer in action. This chapel has provision for reflection, for lighting of candles and for the writing of prayers in an intercession book. The Chapel contains an icon representing the birth of the Christian Church when the Holy Spirit was sent from God to empower the fearful disciples of Christ after his death and ascension into heaven. This ancient story is set in a local background, with the rocks of Ilkley Moor. Also, at the sides, growing amongst other rocks are the distinctive fruit of the West Riding of Yorkshire – sticks of rhubarb. All Christians, if they walk closely with God, are expected to live lives which bear the fruits of his presence – forgiveness, loving-kindness, charity, and hope.
The Lady Chapel
Named after the Mother of Jesus, Mary, this is the place where the daily round of prayer at the heart of cathedral life is carried out. The great William Morris East Window is full of figures from the Bible, from Moses and Abraham, to Mary and Peter, all of them witnesses to Jesus.
About Us
Surrounded by peaceful gardens, Bradford Cathedral is an oasis of quiet where once battles raged. There have been three churches on this site. Founded in Anglo-Saxon times, the earliest church probably disappeared after the invasion by the Normans in 1066. It was rebuilt, but was sacked and burned by Scots raiders in the early fourteenth century. Rebuilt yet again in the C15th, it was then besieged in 1642/3 by Royalists. Bradford has struggled with repeating patterns of war, poverty and plague, but survived, due to a determination to build for the future.
The early churches here stood in a small market town in a rural dale, witnessing the growth of the town from its beginnings as the village by the Broad Ford, which gave us our name. As the town developed, the valley became overcrowded, polluted by smoke from the mills, which won for it a reputation as the world capital of the wool trade. This church became a cathedral in 1919, and now stands at the heart of an increasingly green city. Among the 42 English cathedrals it has a unique place in the Pennines, and is ‘mother church’ to the Bradford diocese which covers the beautiful countryside of the Yorkshire Dales, as far as Sedbergh, on the edge of the Lake District. A former Lord Mayor of Bradford once described Bradford as being the city in the foothills of the Pennines with a population from as far away as the foothills of the Himalayas. This church has seen many changes, all of which have left their mark and tell a story especially the additions of the twentieth century, in a spacious design by Sir Edward Maufe in the 1960’s.
Today this is a place of quiet - a space filled with light and with a sense of the presence of God. Here is a place which belongs to all of Bradford – a community place, with warm hospitality. Friendly and welcoming, this living cathedral has many faces – it is a place of music and the arts, and where the life of the city and its institutions is reflected and celebrated. Here is care about the issues of the day, and care for the individual; a place of healing for past hurts, and hope for the future; here history is still being made. Find here a key to Bradford. Come and discover some of its special qualities and its hidden treasures.
What goes on here?
Bradford Cathedral is the home of a lively and welcoming Christian community who show their Faith in dedication to God and commitment to their neighbour. We offer whatever we can through care for the community, the individual and for our city. This happens both corporately as groups meet, and through individuals involved in the life of the city, as Street Angels, or in Court and Hospital Chaplaincies.
Some examples:
- Artspace Programme
Exploring the Arts and Spirituality through thought-provoking exhibitions and cultural evenings
- Boys’ Brigade, Children’s work and Youth Group welcome new members
- Carers Craft, Chat and Coffee Group
- Choral music, Organ recitals, Concerts
a rich heritage of music to enjoy in a programme of services and events, including Chamber Concerts and Wednesday Lunchtime Organ Recitals. The Cathedral Choir welcomes new members.
- Civic and Diocesan services and events
- Education programme
an imaginative and varied Education Programme for visiting schools, who explore the Cathedral across the curriculum in exciting and colourful ways.
- Fair Trade, Ecology, Racial Harmony
we are committed to becoming a ‘green cathedral’. We have a regular Fair Trade stall. Annual Racial Harmony service and similar events.
- Guided tours, pilgrimages, quiet days
Groups book to discover the peace and beauty of the Cathedral
- Homeless and hungry
are supported with food and clothing
- Inter Faith work
We employ an InterFaith Development Officer
- Lectures and Adult Education
topical issues in vigil and teaching, workshops, exhibitions and events
- Ministry of Healing
Prayer for healing offered by Healing Prayer Group and in Cathedral services
- Visitors
just come for some peace and quiet …. or to find a friendly face. This is a place of hospitality and warmth. Visitors of all faiths and cultures are welcome here.
- Volunteers
dedicated volunteers help with many gifts – from gardening to teaching, welcoming to catering. This is a people place. Would you like to help?
- Worship
The worship programme, is varied and vibrant, including fine traditional English Choral services, and informal praise ranging from quiet candlelit Taizé prayer to exuberant celebrations. All are welcome.
Bradford Cathedral is taking part in our Bradford Faith Trail in 2011. Click here to go to the Faith Trail page.
Please click here for a Google Map
