What the Yearbook and Ordo are

Each year the Diocese of Shrewsbury publishes two linked items.

The Diocesan Yearbook is the printed directory of every parish, chaplaincy, school, religious community and diocesan office. It carries Mass times, parish priests' names, contact details, deanery groupings and the year's diocesan calendar. Clergy carry it in their cassock pocket; parish secretaries keep it on the desk; school chaplains use it to find the right priest for a sacramental enquiry.

The Ordo is the liturgical calendar. It tells priests and lay readers which Mass and Office to celebrate on each day, which colour to wear and which proper texts apply. The diocesan Ordo follows the Roman calendar adapted for Shrewsbury, with proper feasts for St Werburgh, St Winefride and the English martyrs.

Both publications are administered by the Mission Secretary, working from the Curial Office at 2 Park Road South, Prenton.

What you can submit

Parishes and chaplaincies are asked to confirm or update the following each year:

• Mass times for Sundays, weekdays and Holy Days of Obligation.
• Parish priest, assistant priests and resident clergy, with full title and post-nominals.
• Parish address, postcode, telephone and email.
• Parish website and any social channels the parish wants listed.
• Confession times.
• Eucharistic adoration hours, including any perpetual adoration.
• School and chaplaincy links, with the name of the lay chaplain or coordinating teacher.

Schools, religious communities and diocesan offices receive their own confirmation forms.

The submission window

The annual cycle is fixed. The Mission Secretary writes to every parish in early September with a draft of the previous year's entry attached. Parishes have until mid-October to confirm or correct the entry. Print runs are placed in November and copies are circulated before the new liturgical year begins on the First Sunday of Advent.

Late submissions cannot be guaranteed. If your entry misses the October deadline, the previous year's text is reprinted. Mid-year corrections are held over to the following edition unless they affect the validity of a sacrament, for example a change of parish priest or a closed church.

How to submit your update

1. Wait for the September letter from the Mission Secretary. Do not send updates earlier in the year, since the form changes each cycle.
2. Mark the printed proof in red pen, or annotate the PDF if you receive it electronically.
3. Email the corrected entry to education@dioceseofshrewsbury.org with the subject line "Yearbook entry: [parish name]". The Mission Office sits within the Department of Schools, which is why this address is used.
4. Keep a copy of the email. If you do not receive an acknowledgement within seven working days, telephone the Curial Office on 0151 652 9855.
5. For Ordo entries, attach a separate note listing any local feast, dedication anniversary or patronal celebration that needs to appear.

Local feasts in the Ordo

The Shrewsbury Ordo carries a small number of feasts that do not appear in the General Roman Calendar. The most prominent are:

• St Werburgh, virgin, patroness of Chester and a secondary patron of the diocese.
• St Winefride, virgin and martyr, whose well at Holywell remains a place of pilgrimage for the diocese.
• The English Martyrs, with a particular memory of those who suffered in the Marches.
• The dedication of Shrewsbury Cathedral, kept locally as a solemnity by the cathedral parish.

If your parish church is dedicated to a saint outside the calendar, you can ask the Mission Secretary to list the patronal feast as a local memorial. The decision rests with the Bishop, who consults the Vicars General, Canon Jonathan Brandon and Canon Michael Gannon, on borderline cases.

If your parish has changed during the year

Mid-year changes that need to be communicated quickly include:

• A new parish priest, assistant priest or permanent deacon.
• A change of Mass time that lasts more than four weeks.
• The closure or merger of a parish.
• A change of telephone number or office email.

Send these straight to education@dioceseofshrewsbury.org and copy curia@dioceseofshrewsbury.org. The Bishop's Office will publish the change on the diocesan website and update the online directory while the next Yearbook is in preparation.

For any question that is not answered here, contact the Mission Secretary through education@dioceseofshrewsbury.org.