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Bishop Richard Moth, the newly appointed Archbishop of Westminster, indicated that he would take a cautious, needs-led approach to provision for the Traditional Latin Mass after being questioned about it at a press conference in Archbishop’s House on Friday.
The briefing, held at midday in the Throne Room at Archbishop’s House, was the first opportunity for journalists to put questions to the archbishop-elect since the Holy See Press Office confirmed his move from Arundel and Brighton to the country’s senior Catholic see.
Asked by Niwa Limbu of the Catholic Herald to clarify whether any shift in policy might be contemplated in Westminster, Bishop Moth pointed to the limited scale of celebrations in his current diocese and said he had sought the required permissions from the Holy See after the latest Vatican rules were issued.
“In the diocese of Arundel and Brighton, we have a relatively small number of priests who celebrate the old rite, if you want to call it that, and the amount of provision for that is kind of what we needed in the diocese. So when the new requirements came out, I did as I was asked to do. I wrote to the Holy See. I said, this is our situation, and asked for permission for this to continue, and it was granted.”
His remarks place him firmly within the post Traditionis custodes landscape, in which bishops are expected to regulate celebrations of the pre-conciliar liturgy and, in certain cases, to obtain Vatican authorisation for continued provision. Without offering any signal of an imminent tightening in Westminster, he also avoided supporting the older liturgy as a cause around which to rally, describing it instead as one pastoral reality among others.
He insisted it was premature to make commitments in a diocese he has yet to lead on the ground. “As I said earlier on, I am brand new here, with a lot to learn, and I haven’t even got my feet under the desk yet. You’re asking me about future policies. It’s probably a bit early, but what I will say is that anything in terms of pastoral needs, you see what the need is and you do your best to answer it. But that requires conversations, getting to know people, and learning what the situation is.”
In the exchange, he hinted that he intended to play a long game with the Old Rite, stating: “If you look at the CV, my hobby is horse riding. You should never rush a fence.”
Bishop Moth, 67, succeeds Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who has led Westminster since 2009 and has reached the customary retirement age. The appointment makes Moth the principal Catholic figure in public life in England and Wales.
What many learned from the press conference was not only something about the future of the Traditional Latin Mass, but also about what kind of episcopal leadership is now emerging in England and Wales. Bishop Richard Moth’s carefully calibrated, bureaucratic-like answers signal a deliberate long game, revealing a bishop who understands power precisely because he is cautious in how he exercises it.
In the question put to Bishop Moth, our journalist Niwa Limbu described him as a “silent ally” of priests attached to the older rite during his time in Arundel and Brighton. The description was not without foundation. Many priests in the diocese would privately attest that Bishop Moth allowed space, refrained from unnecessary confrontation, and ensured that lawful provision continued. Yet his reply resisted the narrative of quiet resistance. He spoke instead of limited numbers, proportional provision, and formal permission sought and granted by Rome. There was no ideological framing.
The bishop neither repudiated the faithful attached to the old liturgy nor positioned himself as their champion. Instead, he emphasised bureaucratic process, obedience, and pastoral sufficiency. In doing so, he quietly rejected the notion that Westminster would become a liturgical standard-bearer in either direction.
For those who hoped that his appointment might herald a more assertive recalibration of policy, this will be disappointing, but it needn't be. Bishop Moth is an administrator, not a disrupter. In an age when bishops are often pressured to perform symbolic gestures for competing constituencies, his instinct is to say less, not more. It is an old but recurring governing style in Westminster.
Westminster is not Arundel and Brighton. It is a national stage, watched closely by Rome, the media and the episcopate. The new Archbishop of Westminster is signalling control, caution and public management. In the present climate of ecclesial volatility, that may be precisely the answer.
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