The Society under the patronage of Saint Wilfrid and Saint Hilda is delighted to learn of the appointments of Fr Will Hazlewood SSC to be the next Bishop of Lewes and of the Revd Ruth Bushyager to be the next Bishop of Horsham. This is especially welcome news as it is five and a half years since the last announcement of a traditional Catholic priest to be appointed to a Church of England bishopric; at that time it was the appointment of Fr Philip North to be the Bishop of Burnley.

The Rt Revd Tony Robinson, Chairman of The Society's Council of Bishops, commented: "I am thrilled for Will and Ruth and wish them every success and happiness in their new roles. It is wonderful to see the Church of England's Five Guiding Principles being lived out in this way. We have been acutely conscious of the lapse in time since the last appointment of a traditional Catholic priest to the episcopate and so Will's appointment is both welcome and timely. We do of course hold Will and Ruth in our prayers, along with their families, and indeed the entire Diocese of Chichester under Bishop Martin."

As the three Society Bishops based in the Province of York, we welcome the Time to Sow in the North report produced by St John’s College, Nottingham.

As the Bishop of Burnley states in the report’s Foreword, “it is not hard to find Catholic parishes where Church life is vibrant and alive, and the identification of common features associated with such growth is important if parishes in this tradition are to grow in evangelistic confidence.”

We look forward to discussing how the Church’s resources can be targeted at our most deprived communities, where many such Catholic parishes are to be found and where additional resources will, among other factors, help to achieve a growth in Church life.

The Society’s mission strategy, ‘Forming Missionary Disciples’, will also play an integral role in achieving that growth.

We are grateful to St John’s College, Nottingham, especially Fr John Tomlinson, for producing the Time to Sow in the North report and we commend its contents to a wide readership.

At this time of national emergency, we remain acutely aware that the needs of those directly affected by the Coronavirus, and the necessity to limit the risk of infection, make a legitimate demand on our behaviour. As the nation suffers and grieves, let us be constant in prayer and in our public duty to stay home, protect the NHS, save lives.

The sense of loss we all feel from the necessary closure of our churches for public worship is heightened as we approach the most important week of the Church’s year, Holy Week. Nevertheless, there are spiritual benefits which can and will flow to us from a faithful observance of Holy Week in our homes. We should be diligent in our reading of scripture and in our recitation of the Church’s cycle of prayer. To supplement these activities, there is a growing body of liturgical resources available digitally.

For our own part, we shall be issuing a series of short videos to aid devotion and prayer at home during Holy Week. They have been professionally produced and, we hope, will be attractive to a wide audience. The videos will be made available at the following times here.

• Palm Sunday at 8am.

• Maundy Thursday at 3pm.

• Good Friday at 12pm.

• Easter Day at 8am.

The first verse of Psalm 130 speaks to our current circumstances: “Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord.” May we urge a prayerful keeping of Holy Week as we look with confidence to the joyful celebration of Easter in our homes.

The videos were recorded in the Diocese of London in accordance with the restrictions which were in place at that time.

Photo Credit: George Reynolds

The Easter Vigil

The Bishop of Fulham: 8.30pm - here.

Easter Day

The Bishop of Chichester: 10.30pm - here.

The above list will be updates as other bishops finalize their plans.

The devotional videos were recorded in the Diocese of London in accordance with the restrictions which were in place at that time. Thanks go to the Vicar and the Churchwardens of St Benet Fink, Tottenham for the use of the church building

Photo Credit: George Reynolds