Bishop-elect Stephen shared this message for diocesan parishes on 2 July 2026: Dear friends in the Diocese of Arundel & Brighton, dear brothers and sisters, I’m so happy to be appointed as your new bishop, and I am really looking forward to meeting you and getting to know the Diocese – the priests and deacons, those in consecrated life, all the lay faithful, and so many others. I’m really looking forward to visiting our parishes and schools, and all the other communities that make up our Diocese. I’m just sorry that I can’t get back to be with you at this time because we have our diaconal ordination in Rome this weekend. As you can imagine, the news came as a complete surprise to me. The first thing I did after being told on Tuesday morning was to visit St Peter’s Basilica. I prayed at the tombs of St Peter and St John Paul II for you all and offered Mass for the Diocese. There are many challenges ahead, but I am full of hope. I’ve seen so many times what God can do when people pray and work together, and when they put their trust in him. If we listen to one another, and to the Lord, then he will show us the way forward. You have been very blessed to have Archbishop Richard with you over these years. I keep being told what a wonderful diocese it is and how lucky I am to be going there! Which I certainly am. I want to thank Canon Jonathan Martin as well, for looking after things so well in this interim period. Let’s pray for each other, and for our Diocese. Please pray for me and for my intentions. I put all my trust in the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in his Church, and in his mother Mary. His love is so powerful. There is so much to be grateful for, and so much to do. I pray that we can grow in holiness together, be of service to those around us, and help all people to know the love and mercy of Jesus Christ and the message of the Gospel. With every blessing, Fr Stephen Fr Stephen’s Biography Fr Stephen Wang was born in London in 1966 and grew up in Harpenden, Hertfordshire. He read Theology and Religious Studies at Cambridge University from 1986 to 1989, before undertaking priestly formation at the Venerable English College in Rome from 1992 to 1997. Ordained on 3 January 1998, he worked in parish ministry in Dollis Hill, London, from 1997 to 2001. From 2001 to 2005 he studied for a PhD on the subject of human happiness at Cambridge University, assisting at Fisher House Chaplaincy, based at the University, for two years. He lectured in Philosophy and Theology at Allen Hall seminary in Chelsea from 2005 to 2013 and was Dean of Studies from 2009 to 2013. During this time, he was also a visiting priest at Wormwood Scrubs Prison, White City, and a confessor at Notting Hill Carmel, a cloistered convent of Carmelite nuns located in St Charles Square. From 2013 to 2021, Fr Stephen served as Senior University Chaplain in the Diocese of Westminster and was Catholic Chaplain at The London School of Economics. In 2014, a group of young people led by Fr Stephen developed ‘Sycamore’, a video-based Catholic faith formation programme that explores the Christian faith through short films and guided discussion. Designed to make Christianity more accessible, Sycamore is now used by Catholic parishes, schools, and university chaplaincies across the world. Following three years as Vocations Director for Westminster Diocese, Fr Stephen was appointed Rector of the Venerable English College in 2021, where he served for five years.

Most of us will leave church today and go safely home. We will sit at a table, speak to the people we love, and sleep in our own beds. For many seafarers, that simply isn’t possible. They can spend months at sea, often unable to step ashore, with limited contact with home. When something goes wrong, they are far from everything and everyone familiar. And today, many seafarers are working in even more difficult circumstances. In recent weeks and months, the world has watched events in and around the Strait of Hormuz, one of the most important shipping routes in the world. We hear news reports about trade, petrol prices and security. But behind every headline, there are real people on board these ships. People who are wondering when they will get home, whether their ship will be safe, and when they will see the people they love again. At the start of the crisis, around 20,000 seafarers were trapped in the Strait, caught up in a conflict that was completely outside of their control. Some ships and crews have now been able to evacuate. But for Stella Maris, this is often when the work really begins. We know this from our support for seafarers affected by the war in Ukraine. The impact of a crisis does not always appear straight away. Fear, stress, separation from family and financial uncertainty can affect people weeks or even months after the immediate danger has passed. This is why Stella Maris exists. Our chaplains and volunteers visit ships, they listen to crews, help them contact home, support them in hospital, pray with them, and stand alongside them when life at sea becomes frightening or lonely. In today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks of seed being sown generously. The work of Stella Maris is like that sowing. Each visit, each conversation, each quiet act of care is a seed planted in a life that is often hard, isolated and unseen. You may never meet the people who benefit, but your support helps that seed take root. Today is Sea Sunday. A chance to remember the seafarers who bring us so much of what we rely on every day. It is also a chance to help Stella Maris be there for them, offering practical, pastoral and spiritual support when they need it most: during the crisis, and long after the headlines have moved on.

Next Sunday, 21 June, we keep the Day for Life. This year’s theme, “The Wonder of the Child in the Womb,” invites us to pause in gratitude for the gift of new life. It also holds in prayer all parents who have experienced the loss of a child before birth, and the quiet grief that can follow. The bishops’ message and prayers are available at: www.dayforlife.org , if you would like to spend some time reflecting at home. There will be a second collection for the Day for Life Fund, which supports groups working to uphold the dignity of every human life. If you prefer, you can also donate online through the Day for Life website.

On the Bishops' Conference Day for Life there will be a short service of prayer at the Memorial at Arundel Catholic Cemetery, 6 London Road Arundel BN18 9AT to pray for all those affected by the loss of a child at or before birth and for the promotion of a culture of life. The theme this year is The Wonder of the Child in the Womb. See: https://www.cbcew.org.uk/day-for-life/ All welcome, refreshments afterwards in the hall.

Would you be interested in being a small group leader, refreshment maker or prayer minister at our diocesan Young Adult retreats? The Diocese of Arundel and Brighton are looking to run Young Adult retreat days for those aged 18-35 across the diocese. Each will be a day of Faith, Fellowship, Formation and Food! But we need your help...if you are aged 18+ and are interested in supporting these events, please email the Diocesan Youth Project Officer, Bex Driver E : bex.driver@abdiocese.org.uk

Saturday 18 July 12 noon – 4.15pm , Church of Our Lady of Consolation & St Francis, West Grinstead, RH13 8LT. A pilgrimage for people across our diocese - the day includes Holy Mass, a personal Consecration to Our Lady, the Glorious Mysteries of the Rosary, Exposition, Chaplet of Divine Mercy, Adoration and Benediction. There is no need to book, to find out more contact Linda C-Dominguez T:01273463463 or M:07944377252 or Jayne Lock M: 07816422851 or E: jayne.lock1@gmail.com . Please bring a packed lunch.

The Diocesan Vocations Team has launched a special month of prayer for vocations beginning this Sunday. As Catholics, we know that God has a plan for each of us and has called us by name through our baptism, to holiness. He continues to call out to us each day to be His disciples; some to the married life, some to the single life, some to religious life and some to the priesthood. In a Message for the World Day of Prayer for Vocations, Pope Leo highlights the importance of daily prayer and cultivating a personal relationship with God: “We must urgently recommence our vocational ministry and renew our commitment to evangelisation” he said. “In light of this, I invite everyone –– in families, parishes and religious communities, as well as bishops, priests, deacons, catechists, educators and all the faithful –– to commit themselves more fully to creating conditions that allow this gift to be embraced, nourished, protected and accompanied, so that it may bear abundant fruit. “Only when our surroundings are illumined by living faith, sustained by constant prayer and enriched by fraternal accompaniment can God’s call blossom and mature, becoming a path of happiness and salvation for individuals and for the world. By embarking on the path that Jesus, the Good Shepherd, shows us, we come to know more deeply both ourselves and the God who calls us…  “Dear brothers and sisters, dear young people, I encourage you to cultivate your personal relationship with God through daily prayer and meditation on the Word. Pause, listen and entrust yourselves. In this way, the gift of your vocation will mature, bringing you happiness and yielding abundant fruit for the Church and the world.”

We are hosting this year’s service at St Peter’s, which has been prepared by the women of Nigeria and the theme is " I will give you rest, come..."  The service will be followed by light refreshments in the Parish Room afterwards. All are welcome.

Mass of Thanksgiving for Bishop Richard’s Ministry in Arundel & Brighton: 30 January, 6.30pm, Arundel Cathedral. People across our diocesan family are invited to join a special cathedral Mass of Thanksgiving celebrated by Bishop Richard, followed by a reception in the Baron’s Hall, Arundel Castle, by kind permission of His Grace, the Duke of Norfolk. All are welcome. Please leave extra time to park in the town as parking will be limited. To watch the Mass by livestream click here