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Stoke Minster is one of only twelve churches in England dedicated to St Peter ad Vincula (St Peter in chains).
So why has Stoke got this unusual dedication?
It refers to a story in Acts 12, where an angel frees St Peter the Apostle from prison. We are told that
'the chains fell off his wrists' and he made his escape. Four hundred years later, a church in Rome claimed
to have those actual chains and that church was naturally named for St Peter ad Vincula. If you go there today
you can still see those chains on display under its altar. The church was dedicated on 1st August, so that day
became the feast of St Peter ad Vincula.
In the seventh century St Chad and other Christian missionaries were bringing the faith to pagan England.
The full story is lost to history, but it seems most likely that missionaries found an existing holy place by the
River Trent - the word 'stoke' means 'place' and Celtic holy places were often by rivers - and local people already
celebrated a harvest festival on 1st August, so it was natural to put up a Christian cross and dedicate the place
to the Christian festival of St Peter ad Vincula.
Today, over 1300 years later, we still keep that feast of St Peter ad Vincula on 1st August every year. We gather
around the Saxon carved stone cross in the churchyard and offer our prayers to the God who breaks all the chains
of oppression, debt and slavery.
St Peter's also prides itself on being the Civic Church and the place where world-famous potters such as
Josiah Wedgwood, Josiah Spode and Thomas Minton are buried.
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