Clifton Diocese is the Catholic diocese covering the West of England and includes the City and County of Bristol, the counties of Gloucestershire, Somerset, Wiltshire, North Somerset, South Gloucestershire and Bath and North East Somerset.
 
 
 
 
 
 

Links to pages on our website:
 









 
 
 
 
Safeguarding is an essential part in the life and ministry of the Church.  It is the responsibility of all of us to ensure our parishes and institutions are safe places, especially for those who are vulnerable.  Abuse and harm have no place in our diocese.  There is zero tolerance to abuse, harm and any behaviour that falls short of appropriate safeguarding practices as expressed in National Policies.
 
 
 

 
 
 
 
 
Celebration of Marriage and Family Life Mass

Bishop Bosco is looking forward to celebrating Mass in the Cathedral on Saturday 17 May (12 noon) and is inviting all families to join him to acknowledge the joys and challenges of family life. In addition, we will celebrate those couples with significant anniversaries this year. 

If you are, or know of a couple, celebrating a special anniversary during 2025 please do let us know. 
You just need to send the names to our email address: 

 
with an address so that a personal invitation can be sent out from the bishop, including the number of years celebrating.

It is always a wonderful Mass at the Cathedral, and it is always good to see so many of you there.
 

Encounter Launch Event
 
On Saturday 3rd May, over 200 people gathered at Clifton Diocese for the official launch of Encounter 2025 — a diocesan-wide initiative running from Eastertide to Pentecost. The event brought together the whole Church family, with tailored sessions for children and young people. One young participant shared, “I really enjoyed the day and I was made to feel part of the Church.”

Encounter 2025 is an inspiring journey that seeks to awaken your soul and empower your walk with Christ through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Catch up on the launch day talks here:

Pippa Baker: Watch here

Fr Matt Anscombe & Caroline Sadd: Watch here

On Wednesday evening, the first of our five evening sessions took place, with over 200 people joining both in the Cathedral and via parish live streams across the diocese.
Is your parish taking part?

It’s not too late to get involved. Encounter 2025 continues this Wednesday (see below) — don’t miss the opportunity to be part of this powerful move of the Holy Spirit.

Watch the first session here: Wednesday Talk

Let’s walk together in faith, renewed, and inspired. As Pippa Baker said at our Launch Event, “God is up to something”, be a part of this journey. Get involved. 
 

Wednesday 14th May – Encounter Session 2. The Holy Spirit –
Promise of the Father Ann Tarr
 
Ann is from Portishead and went to school at La Retraite in Clifton . She is the administrator of the Renewal team in Clifton Diocese and a member of the Cathedral Parish. She has a heart for serving the poor and is the Debt Centre Manager for Christians Against Poverty in North Somerset. She is also a Street Pastor in Bristol.  

Ann worked at senior levels in Financial Services for three decades and has volunteered her time for many organisations including serving on the Diocesan Finance Committee, as Chair of School Governors and as a  CAFOD volunteer for secondary schools. She is married to Nick and they have a blended family of five adult children. Ann has studied theology and philosophy.
 
 

First group visit Clifton Cathedral for the Jubilee year of Hope 2025

We were delighted to be the first group visit to Clifton Cathedral for the Jubilee year of Hope 2025; as the Green Team from the parishes of Weston Super Mare. Following ideas presented by the Jubilee Year we made our mini-pilgrimage to the Cathedral by public transport and walking. On Friday 25th April the day dawned bright and sunny as we began our journey as Pilgrims of Hope.
Katie Davies.
 
National Day of Prayer for Survivors of Abuse 2025
 
This year’s Day of Prayer for Survivors of Abuse is Tuesday 20th May 2025.
This year’s focus is on the theme of “The Empty Chair”. Many of us are saddened by reducing numbers in our churches. This is happening for a wide variety of reasons, but our thoughts are on those who are not there because they have suffered abuse in a church setting and cannot face being here. They may be the families or friends of survivors. They may be former members of a community affected by allegations or convictions for abuse. They may be people who are simply so disgusted or ashamed by what they have heard about abuse within the Church that they no longer want to be part of it. All these groups and others are represented by “The Empty Chair”.
 
 

Deeper into Baptism

Clifton Diocese in partnership with ‘Light of Truth’ are offering a workshop led by the Dominican Sisters of St Joseph to help catechists develop their understanding of the Sacrament of Baptism and practically integrate that understanding into their catechesis.

The online session will take place on 14 June, 9am – 12noon.

Topics cover: What Baptism is and what it does; The relationship between Baptism and the other sacraments and Integrating knowledge of Baptism.

To sign up for the session, please click on the Zoom link here.

More information on other courses & sessions run by the Sisters can be found on the following link: https://www.lightoftruth.uk/join
 
The Vocation of the Catechist
 
Have you ever thought about becoming a catechist or does the idea of taking on such a role fill you with dread?
This short session is an opportunity for anyone who is simply curious about the role, for those who are keen but worried that they might not have what it takes and for those who would like to understand more about the vocation of the catechist.

As a diocese, we need more people to consider this important role in our Church, so please do consider joining us to hear more about what it entails and ask all the questions you have running through your mind.

On Monday 23 June at 7pm, we will be holding this online session. Let us know if you would like to attend so that we can send you a Teams link.
Simply email: adult.education@cliftondiocese.com if you would like to join us.
 
Jubilee Celebration of Hope
 
We would like to invite you to our big Diocesan celebration on Saturday 19 July, where we will be gathering with Bishop Bosco for our Diocesan Jubilee Day of Hope.
 
Our venue will be Downside School & Abbey. We will have three keynote speakers for our adult programme (Jane Livesey CJ, Eddie Gilmore, Simon Uttley), as well as a children’s & young people’s programme throughout the day.
 
Children and Teen-Age Jubilee Programme - A full programme of activities will be run by experienced group leaders for our children and young people ranging in age from 3-16. We are delighted to announce that Rise Theatre Company will be offering the workshops for our 12-16 age group. Rise Theatre Company is a well-established Catholic Theatre Company who work extensively with schools and parishes to offer meaningful programmes, performances, and retreats.
 
Programme for the Day - Arrivals and Refreshments from 10am. Our programme of Prayer and talks will commence at 10.30am.
 
Refreshments - In addition to coffee and tea breaks, * a free hot two course lunch will be provided - this will be by ticket only (a lunch box is provided for children/young people). There will be a maximum of 300 tickets for this including children. * We have now reached the maximum number for the hot meals, if you register after 27 March, a picnic lunch will be provided on the day.
 
Mass - Our Jubilee Celebration of Mass will take place in the Abbey Church at 3pm. Principal Celebrant Bishop Bosco MacDonald and the Abbot of Downside Dom Nicholas Wetz OSB.
 
Booking - If you would like to join us for the day, booking through Eventbrite is essential.
Please register via this link: https://jubileedayofhope.eventbrite.co.uk for your free ticket.
 
For the purpose of catering to the right numbers, a printed or mobile ticket from Eventbrite is required for the day. The closing date for tickets is 7 July.
 
All are most welcome; we look forward to seeing you!
 

 
 
 
 
Clifton Catholic Diocese            www.cliftondiocese.com
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