Thought for the week
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Reflection for 8th February 2026 - 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Archbishop-Elect Richard celebrated a Mass of Thanksgiving last Friday evening, ahead of his installation as the new Archbishop of Westminster on Saturday 14 February. Guests at Arundel Cathedral included the Duke of Norfolk; the Earl & Countess of Arundel; Georgina, Duchess of Norfolk; the Bishop of Chichester and the Abbot of Worth, with more than 80 members of clergy and over 600 lay faithful joining +Richard in person to celebrate more than a decade of service to the Diocese, and a further 500 people joining the Mass via the cathedral's livestream.
Speaking during the homily, +Richard highlighted: "the commitment within our parishes, and the growth in that commitment, to work ever more closely together [which lies at] the heart of the pastoral plan." Reflecting on the rich life of faith across the Diocese he said: "I rejoice in... our schools, drawing our young people to Christ... in the welcome given to the refugee, to the abiding presence of God’s love through chaplaincy in our prisons and to those affected by crime... [and] the healing presence of the Lord in the various ministries exercised in our hospitals.
"As disciples of Christ" he continued, "we shall always face challenges. This has always been so – we need only to look to the shrine of our Patron, St Philip Howard to be reminded of this – and it will always be so. Yet we need not fear, for the Lord is with us. If we rely on ourselves, we shall not discover the answers to these challenges, no matter how hard we look; but the Lord has the answers and our openness to the Spirit that He has sent us will show us the way...
"I rejoice that I have been privileged to be a part of this work, here in Arundel & Brighton, over these last ten and a half years. I am very conscious of my failings, and I thank you for your patience and kindness. You have given me so much more than I could have ever given to you. I shall take with me so many happy memories of my time here."
Speaking at the end of Mass, the diocesan Chancellor Canon Jonathan Martin said: "Father, you have served us with unstinting generosity and good humour, brought great dignity and devotion to the celebration of the sacred liturgy, fostered through your own evident love of the sacred Scriptures, that practice of Lectio Divina that is now well-established in so many of our parishes, and you have listened, before listening became fashionable.
"Perhaps the greatest legacy that you leave behind is the diocesan pastoral plan, through which you invited us to join with you and with each other in 'forging our parishes into communities of saints, into strong, lively and welcoming schools of discipleship, into communities where the liturgy is experienced as an encounter with the wonder of heaven', and from where we seek to share the Gospel with others...
"And just as one sows and another waters, yet another reaps. For it is now in God's providence for us and your successor to realise all that you, as our apostle, have set before us, so that we might continue to build upon the firm foundations you have established here, with that courage and vision you will now take to Westminster."
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Reflection for 8th February 2026 - 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time