A parish is thriving against the odds in England’s ‘wild west’
Fishermen were the first disciples called by Jesus, according to the Gospels, and that example inspires those serving coastal communities today. Fr Philip Dyson has been running the Holy Family parish in the far west of Cornwall for 12 years. The “wild west”, as he likes to call it, may be famous for shipwrecks, smuggling, Poldark and stunning scenery, but looking after four flourishing congregations is anything but a holiday.
Fr Dyson zips between the mother church in Penzance; Sacred Heart and St Ia in St Ives; and St Joseph’s in Hayle to celebrate Mass at the weekend. Also part of the far-flung parish is Our Lady, Star of the Sea, in St Mary’s, one of the Isles of Scilly. Along with an endless round of marriages, baptisms and funerals, it makes for a busy, sometimes hectic life. But Fr Dyson wouldn’t have it any other way. “I am a Yorkshireman, and my mother brought me up with the attitude that if something needs doing, then get on and do it,” he said.
