FR STEPHEN WANG WILL BE INSTALLED AS THE SIXTH BISHOP OF THE DIOCESE OF ARUNDEL & BRIGHTON ON MONDAY 19 OCTOBER AT 12 NOON - The Mass of Episcopal Ordination, which takes place on the Feast of St Philip Howard, will include invited representatives from across our diocesan family of faith and be livestreamed from Arundel Cathedral. Bishop Stephen will also celebrate a special Mass of Welcome for people across our Diocese at Worth Abbey near Crawley, on Saturday 24 October at 11.30; further details will be announced soon.

PEOPLE FROM ACROSS THE DIOCESE HAVE WELCOMED THE APPOINTMENT OF FR STEPHEN WANG AS OUR NEW BISHOP - Speaking about the appointment earlier this week, Fr Stephen, expressed “gratitude, trepidation, excitement and curiosity.” In an interview, Fr Stephen highlighted the importance of getting to know the people of the Diocese: “I’m sure there’ll be a lot of time and energy to put into meeting people and getting to know them,” he said, “that will be the most important thing, along with praying with them, learning what’s going on for them, and them getting to know me as their bishop, and their friend as well.”

28th May, 12.00, Arundel Cathedral. Join the priests of our Diocese who are celebrating 25, 40, 50 and 60 years of priestly ordination, to give thanks for their years of service at this special Mass in Arundel Cathedral. All are welcome. [ PLEASE NOTE : due to the jubilarians Mass there will be no Mass in the Parish on Thursday 28th May.]

As we prepare for coming of Pentecost this year the Epsom Deanery will be holding an extended time of prayer for 24 hours. The event will take place in St Joseph's Church, Epsom, KT18 7JQ commencing with 10.00 Mass on Friday 22nd May and concluding with Mass at 10.00 Saturday 23rd May . This is a graced moment for us all to gather in prayer around the Lord in the Eucharist - to pray, to adore, to be silent, and to hold the brokenness of our world before the healing presence of Christ. The event will be divided into 1 hour slots to which parishioners from all across the Deanery are invited to commit to coming to the church and spending 1 hour in prayer. We need at least two people to commit to each hour (so that is a minimum of 48 people across the Deanery). If you are unable to offer an hour you can come at any time for as long or short a time as you can manage during the 24 hour period - and of course more than two people can sign up for any particular hour. Those who are sick or housebound and unable to attend are invited to send their prayer intentions (in writing and in good time) via their local Parish Office and these will be placed before the Blessed Sacrament. There will also be opportunities to pray the Rosary, celebrate Reconciliation, and join in communal prayer at specific times (more information to follow). Sign-Up Sheets will be available in all the Epsom Deanery Churches from next weekend (25 th & 26 th April). For those who would like to attend but do not have transport, it is hoped to coordinate lift-sharing through the Parish Offices of the church where you are registered. Once we have a clearer picture of who may require assistance and who is able to offer a lift, we can try to make the necessary arrangements. As St Theresa of Avila said in the 16th Century, 'the world is on fire' - how much more so today. May the Lord bless all our efforts and desires to bring His Peace into the world. Fr Simon Hall, Epsom, on behalf of the Deanery

CORPUS CHRISTI CARPET OF FLOWERS - 3-4 June, Arundel Cathedral.  Experience Arundel’s beautiful Carpet of Flowers, celebrating the Feast of Corpus Christi. View the carpet 09.30 - 19.00 (Weds) and 09.30 - 17.30 (Thurs). Mass, followed by a procession to Arundel Castle, begins at 17.30 on Thursday. All are welcome.

‘CONFIDENT PARENTING IN A WORLD OF SCREENS’ - webinar - 29th April, 20.00 Hardly a day goes by without some headline highlighting the impact of smartphones and social media upon teenagers. They face a whole new level of complexity as they grow up in a digital world, but as parents and carers there are so many things we can do to help them navigate it well. CELEBRATE Trust has invited a speaker from Care for the Family, a national UK charity, to share how we can best support teenagers through the challenges of our digital world, and offer practical advice and principles to apply in our own unique families. This is the first of 2 webinars for parents and carers of teenagers. The second webinar will be on ‘Raising Teenagers in a Catholic Family’ with the Messy Family Project, a Catholic family ministry from the US on 2 nd June 2026, 20.00 To book: www.celebratetrust.org/faith-parenting

Wednesday 1st April, 18.00, Arundel Cathedral, BN18 9AY. People from across our diocesan family of faith are invited to join Bishop Gerard Bradley and members of clergy at the annual Chrism Mass – one of the most beautiful Masses of the year, celebrated in Catholic cathedrals across the world in Holy Week. All are welcome

DO NOT FORGET ! Our annual ‘Lenten Reconciliation Service for Adults’ takes place THIS FRIDAY 27th March at 19.30 in the church of Our Lady of Sorrows, Effingham, KT24 5JP. We join with the Parish of Effingham & Fetcham in celebrating the Lord’s forgiveness ready for the great festival of Easter. We will be joined by four priests to aid us in this celebration. This is the major opportunity this Lent to ask for God’s forgiveness.

Applications for our Diocesan Lourdes Pilgrimage are open now! Is Our Lady calling you to Lourdes this summer? Travelling to Lourdes is a wonderful experience full of fun, companionship, faith, friendship and laughter. Each person on our pilgrimage brings distinctive gifts and graces with them, benefitting those they meet during the week. What do we do during our Pilgrimage Week? We have a daily programme of events which includes a number of Masses and liturgies in different settings, with different themes. The Pilgrimage opens with a Mass of welcome for everyone and opening ceremony, where everyone is invited to have their hands blessed in recognition of the service we offer each other as we make our pilgrimage together. We also celebrate Mass at the Grotto where we remember friends and family members who have died, and a Mass of farewell shortly before we leave Lourdes. There is a Holy Hour during the week, a time for Lectio Divina, and many other opportunities for private and group prayer at the Grotto and in the Sanctuary.