Pope Francis has appointed Bishop Alan Hopes as the fourth
Bishop of East Anglia. Bishop Hopes was
ordained priest in the Church of England in 1968 and served until he was
received into the Catholic Church in 1994. He was ordained priest in the
Catholic Church in December 1995. He was ordained bishop in Westminster’s
Metropolitan Cathedral of the Most Precious Blood on 24 January 2003. He is
Chairman of The Committee for Liturgy and is a member of the Bishops’
Conference Department of Life and Worship.
Bishop Hopes succeeds the late Bishop Michael Evans who died peacefully
on 11 July 2011 after a long illness. Following Bishop Evans’ death Fr David
Bagstaff has acted as Diocesan Administrator. Bishop Hopes will be installed as
the Bishop of East Anglia on Tuesday 16 July at St. John the Baptist Cathedral,
Norwich. Learning of the appointment,
Bishop Hopes said: “It is with a profound sense of trust in God’s loving care
for us, that I will undertake this new ministry as Bishop of East Anglia,
entrusted to me by our Holy Father, Pope Francis. In this year of faith, and at the beginning
of the pontificate of Pope Francis, it is an immense privilege to be called to
follow in the footsteps of the late Bishop Michael Evans in serving and leading
God’s holy people in this diocese. I look forward with joy to working with the
priests, deacons, religious and all the faithful who minister in the parishes,
schools, chaplaincies and other pastoral and charitable ministries of the
diocese in our common task of evangelisation. I am grateful indeed to Fr David
Bagstaff who has been Diocesan Administrator for the past two years and all who
have had supported him in this responsibility.
“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to the Diocese of
Westminster where I have been a priest and bishop, in particular to Archbishop
Vincent Nichols and Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor for their unfailing
support, guidance and encouragement. I shall miss its vibrancy and the spirited
clergy with whom I have been privileged to work. “I look forward to working closely with our
many ecumenical partners in seeking to respond to the call of our Lord Jesus
Christ to love God and serve our neighbours.
I also hope to engage with the members of the other faith communities
and all people of good will. As I take
up this new apostolate, I ask for your prayers and support. I invoke the
prayers of the patrons of the diocese, St Felix, St Edmund, St Etheldreda. In
particular I entrust myself to the maternal intercession of Mary, our Lady of
Walsingham, whose faith, trust and loving obedience is always the guiding light
on our pilgrimage as disciples of Christ.”
The Most Rev Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said: “I am
delighted that Bishop Alan has been appointed as Bishop of East Anglia. I would
also like to thank him for his considerable service as parish priest, vicar
general and auxiliary Bishop in Westminster for the past 10 years. He is in our
prayers as he prepares to continue his ministry in the service of all in East
Anglia.” East Anglia Diocesan
Administrator Fr David Bagstaff welcomed the appointment: “I am delighted to
hear of the appointment of Bishop Alan Hopes.
I am sure that he will be warmly welcomed in our Diocese, which has
worked so hard to continue our mission of proclaiming the Gospel over the two
years since Bishop Michael’s death. I am
most grateful to the priests and people of the Diocese for their support, and
am glad to hand over the responsibility for the Diocese to an experienced and
trusted colleague who already has some knowledge of our Diocese and has
expressed such joy in his appointment.”
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