Reflections & Homilies

Fr Toby Lees OP gave this homily during the Easter Vigil Mass at St Dominic's Priory - The Rosary Shrine, London NW5. In late 1944, a Japanese soldier named Hiroo Onoda was sent to a small island in the Philippines. His mission was to destroy the Lubang airfield and a harbour pier. He failed, and as enemy forces took control, he and his fellow troops retreated into the jungle. The war was soon ove... Read More

Archbishop Mark opened his Easter message by drawing on Ted Hughes' poem The Horses - set in that deep, cold hour before dawn, when darkness is at its deepest and the frost at its most intense. He acknowledged the weight many people are carrying right now: war in the Middle East and Ukraine, famine in Sudan, rising fuel costs, pressure on families. "It may feel very dark," he said. But then came t... Read More

This Easter morning, many thousands of adults - mainly young adults mostly from no religious background - have made their way through the shadows and darkness of our time like the women and the apostles on the first Easter morning to "see and believe" that Jesus Christ is risen from the dead and truly present in His Church, supremely in His Eucharist (Cf. Jn. 20: 8). They have searched through the... Read More

Pope Leo XIV reflected on good, evil, and rebirth, as he presided over the Easter Vigil Mass in St Peter's Basilica last night. Easter, the Pope said, quoting from an ancient hymn, "drives out hatred, fosters concord and brings down the mighty". While the heart of the Easter story is Jesus' resurrection from the dead, Pope Leo said, "the holy mystery of this night … extends across the centuries"... Read More

"Easter does not begin with a proclamation of victory, but with listening to a story: a story that confronts death to reach life." With these words, the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem, Cardinal Pierbattista Pizzaballa, recalled the passage through darkness necessary to reach the Resurrection, in his homily for the Easter Vigil celebration that he presided over on the morning of Saturday, April 4, in... Read More

On 4 April 2026, Archbishop Richard Moth celebrated his first Easter Vigil as Archbishop of Westminster. During the Mass, the Cathedral's candidates and catechumens joined hundreds of others throughout the diocese in receiving one or all of the Sacraments of Initiation. In his homily, Archbishop Moth rejoiced in the witness of so much new life in the Church and gave thanks for their faith, saying:... Read More

The Resurrection of the Lord - Pascha Christ is risen, he is truly risen! Though the recent debate about the sudden recovery of Christianity amongst us may not be quite the numerical success story as some people suggest, one thing seems to be at least true and verifiable, that our faith is far from dying! I tend to ignore the religious culture wars, the noise of those who prefer the Tridentine Mas... Read More

Archbishop Richard Moth's Homily, given at the Solemn Liturgy of the Passion on 3 April 2026 at Westminster Cathedral. Dear Brothers and Sisters, The liturgy in which we come together today is like no other in the Church's year. The very simplicity and starkness of this liturgy assist our reflection and meditation on the passion and death of the Saviour. Today, therefore, let us open our minds and... Read More

Given for the Office of Readings on Good Friday, 3 April 2026 at Westminster Cathedral. Stat Crux dum volvitur orbis. The Cross stands while the world goes round. These words, which form the motto of the Carthusian Order, are helpful to us in the busy-ness of our lives and the instability and seeming chaos of the world in which we live. The cross is not a sign to be misappropriated, but a constant... Read More

April 4th 2026 Holy Saturday is an odd day for many of us, whilst we know that this day is one in which we remember Christ's descent to death in the tomb, that journey to the last long sleep we all have, nevertheless it is also a day of anticipation, for we know the resurrection already permeates every aspect of our human lives and the life of the whole world. Yet it is good to push a pause butto... Read More

This week, the news warned of the sharpest fuel price increase ever experienced in South Africa, driven by soaring international oil prices due to the war in the Middle East. The warning landed in my body, not only in my head. After a long day of meetings and Holy Week commitments, I found my tank running low and decided to risk the petrol station. Two stations were dry. The third had a long queue... Read More

This evening, Archbishop Richard Moth celebrated the Mass of the Lord's Supper at Westminster Cathedral. In his homily, he reflected on the Passover fulfilled in Christ, the Lamb of God who delivers humanity from sin through his self-giving sacrifice. Emphasising Christ's example of humble service in the washing of feet, he points to how this is in continuity with the gift of the Eucharist, in wh... Read More

April 3rd 2026 When I Survey the Wondrous Cross The Liturgy of Good Friday has a solemn simplicity that takes us back to earlier times, in fact the structure has its roots in the 4th century Liturgy in the basilica of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem, mainly the veneration of the Cross and reading of the Passion, mentioned by the pilgrim Egeria in her account of the ceremonies. It also has links t... Read More

April 2nd 2026 Ubi Caritas On Holy Thursday most of us focus on the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper and the watching with that sacramental presence of the Lord, as our altars are stripped bare in preparation for the solemn day of Good Friday. But the English title for this day, Maundy Thursday from the Latin word mandatum, hints at a profound otherness in what takes place and point... Read More