 He has two brothers, Paul and Christopher, and three sisters, Elizabeth, Ann, and Katherine.After attending St. Joseph's College in Upholland, he was ordained to the priesthood on 16 June 1962 by the then Archbishop of Liverpool, John Carmel Heenan.Until 1965, Rawsthorne studied natural sciences, and was then assigned to pastoral work in West Derby, Croxteth, Childwall, and Liverpool; he also worked in religious education.