Bishop Philip Egan has led the Diocese of Portsmouth since 2012, guiding a diverse flock across southern England and the Channel Islands with a vision centred firmly on Christ. A theologian by training and a pastor at heart, he has set out a ten-year mission plan built on “six holy habits”, encouraging Catholics to live their faith through prayer, penance and joyful witness.
In this interview, Bishop Egan reflects on the place of the Latin Mass in his diocese, the challenges of evangelisation in a secular culture, and the need for reverence and beauty in every liturgy. He also offers candid thoughts on the current state of British politics and the hope he sees in a new generation rediscovering the beauty of the Catholic faith.
Bishop Egan is alert to the world beyond the Church walls. The current political climate in Britain troubles him deeply — not least the push to widen access to abortion and assisted suicide. Politics will rise and fall, he says, but the love of Christ remains.
CH: As the Eighth Bishop of Portsmouth, you’ve emphasised evangelisation and spiritual renewal, notably through your “six holy habits” and the ten-year mission plan. Can you share a key moment from your tenure that defines this vision for the diocese?
+BPE: Thank you for mentioning our ten-year mission plan. It is called You Will Be My Witnesses and it is based on three interlinked principles, of which the first is the most important: (1) putting Christ at the centre of everything we do; (2) outreach to those around us in charity and service; and (3) the prudent stewardship of resources. I summarise it as: “Bringing people closer to Jesus Christ through His Church.”
To help put Christ at the centre, I have asked everyone in the diocese to keep six holy habits: to spend five minutes a day in prayer; to attend Mass every Sunday; to go to Confession once a month or so; to keep Fridays as a day of penance and charity; to visit and pray before the Blessed Sacrament once a fortnight; and to join a small group for fellowship, formation and support.
It is a joy to visit teams of clergy and laity across the diocese who are genuinely trying to put this vision into practice, planning for renewal and implementing evangelising strategies to reach out to the lapsed and the lost. The Holy Spirit is clearly at work.
CH: The Diocese of Portsmouth spans diverse regions, from urban Hampshire to the rural Channel Islands. What are the most pressing pastoral challenges you face in meeting the spiritual needs of such varied communities, and how do you adapt your approach to ensure the Church remains a vibrant presence?
+BPE: You talk a lot here about the Church! Yet what really counts — the One who really counts — is Jesus Christ. How can we help people to encounter Him? How can we help people develop a life-changing friendship with Him? How can we help them to join with Him in building the Kingdom?
That is our pastoral challenge. It is the same challenge across the diocese. If we try our best to address this, I am sure we will also address the decline in Mass attendance, the crisis in vocations, and the many other challenges our parishes and our Catholic schools face. Our mission plan is exactly about engaging with culture, encouraging lay leadership, reaching out to the young and building up the life of the Church.
CH: You welcomed Pope Leo XIV as a leader for a new apostolic age. What specific hopes do you have for his papacy in addressing the global challenges facing the Church, particularly in promoting the deposit of the faith and evangelisation in a secular world?
+BPE: The task of the Petrine ministry is to proclaim Christ, died and risen, and to protect and support the communion of the Church. Every pope who is truly a man of prayer, centred on the Person of Christ, fulfils our hopes.
I pray that Pope Leo will faithfully guard the deposit of revelation, attractively expound its meaning, and effectively connect with those of little or no faith. I hope he will give us sound teaching and wise governance, and constantly focus the Church on its essential purpose: to proclaim the Gospel and to bring everyone to heaven.
CH: The Traditional Latin Mass has a dedicated following in your diocese. How have you worked to balance the needs of those devoted to the Extraordinary Form with the broader liturgical life of the Church, especially in light of recent Vatican directives?
+BPE: We are blessed in Reading to have a parish run by the Priestly Fraternity of St Peter (FSSP), and here and there in the diocese the Extraordinary Form (EF) liturgy has a devoted, albeit small, following. I understand both those who cherish it and those who find it a real challenge.
The Novus Ordo is the Ordinary Form (OF) of the Roman Rite, and the form we are all now used to. However, I must admit that having two consecutive popes with differing approaches has made it difficult to guide and support the flock. Personally, I hope Pope Leo will take a more pragmatic approach, whilst leaving it to the local bishop to decide what is best, in light of both Summorum Pontificum and Traditionis Custodes.
CH: Pope Francis’s Traditionis Custodes and subsequent restrictions have sparked debate among Catholics. What are your thoughts on these measures, and how have they affected the faithful in Portsmouth who cherish the Latin Mass?
+BPE: One of the good things with Traditionis Custodes is that it put the local bishop back in charge, but it has also meant that there are now fewer celebrations of the EF liturgy in the diocese. In my view, the real challenge is not the celebration of the EF liturgy, but the proper, solemn and beautiful celebration of the Ordinary Form liturgy.
In 2021, we conducted an extensive survey of the laity and this was the heartfelt desire of so many respondents. It is also why we are currently investing in liturgical formation and liturgical music — both at the cathedral and, in time, across the diocese.
CH: Given your theological background, how do you view the spiritual and cultural significance of the Latin Mass in the Church’s tradition, and what steps can be taken to preserve its legacy while fostering unity under current restrictions?
+BPE: The celebration of the Latin Mass — in both the OF and the EF forms — and the use of Gregorian chant, as envisaged by the Second Vatican Council, can be a powerful tool of evangelisation, especially for the young. I am happy to encourage the Latin Mass within a wide and diverse ‘repertoire’ of liturgy across the diocese.
The key thing is to be Christ-focused in our liturgy. It’s not just about aesthetics or warm feelings. It’s not about what we do but about what God does. I wish to encourage a wider variety of liturgy, but always beautiful and awe-inspiring, and faithful to the norms. We need liturgy that speaks in a truly spiritual way — that changes hearts and minds, and that sends people out on mission and service.
CH: With Cardinal Nichols set to retire fully as Archbishop of Westminster in November, how would you reflect on his contributions to the Church in England and Wales, especially in navigating complex social and political issues?
+BPE: Whenever it is that the Cardinal retires, in my view he has been outstanding in his guidance of the Bishops’ Conference and in his support of individual bishops. He has also spoken passionately on all today’s hot-button issues, especially on human trafficking, care for the dying, and the need to make the Church a safe place for all.
CH: If you were to offer one piece of advice to the incoming Archbishop of Westminster, what would it be, especially considering the challenges of secularism, declining Church attendance, and moral debates in the UK?
+BPE: I would want to encourage him first to study in depth the challenges you mention and their devastating impact on parishes and schools, and then to help us all to bring them in prayer to the Lord.
As a Church, we need to engage in a critical conversation with the cultures we live in. In this way, I would hope we would find new approaches and strategies to strengthen the faith of Catholics and to reach out with the Gospel to others.
CH: The current Labour government has been vocal about issues like abortion and euthanasia, with recent pushes to liberalise laws in these areas. How should the Church in England and Wales respond to these policies, and what role can the Portsmouth Diocese play in advocating for a culture of life?
+BPE: The issues you identify — which also include other dangerous developments such as increasing restrictions on free speech — are the result of the loss of a Christian meta-narrative and the relativisation of truth. Religion and ethics are interrelated, and so the loss of faith — the loss of a personal relationship with Jesus Christ within His Body, the Church — has undermined ethics.
The country is losing its way. The only way the Church, either nationally or locally, can reverse this is to be truly converted herself. Every Christian must do their best to proclaim and to live the Veritatis Splendor — the beauty of the truth of Christ. This includes the Cross, which we must be ready to embrace.
CH: You’ve spoken out against liberalising abortion and euthanasia laws, urging Catholics to mobilise. How can the Church effectively engage both Catholics and non-Catholics in the UK to uphold the sanctity of life, especially in a society increasingly open to these practices?
+BPE: The only way to true happiness in life is in Christ and so, to repeat, it is up to us as Catholics to do our best to witness to this. It is truly distressing to see so many people in society apparently without a relationship with the God who made them — their Father. This is real poverty.
Abortion is a tragedy: one in three babies are now aborted before birth, and society has become numb to this. Suicide and euthanasia will soon be normalised — and in time, eugenics. As Catholics, we must teach clearly the true and equal dignity of every human life, from conception to natural death, forming consciences in our parishes and schools, whilst caring for the vulnerable.
We must accompany, not condemn. We must pray, speak kindly, and serve generously in proposing an alternative culture of life. What gives me joy is seeing the number of young adults who are currently discovering the beauty of the Catholic faith. They have often done their homework, helped by the excellent resources available online.
In the diocese, one of the events we organise from time to time is a symposium, open to people of all faiths and none. The last ones were on faith and politics, and science and religion. The next one is to be on Artificial Intelligence.
CH: Bishop Egan, you’ve dedicated your life to serving the Church, from your early days as a priest to leading the Portsmouth Diocese. Could you share a joyful moment from your journey that has stayed with you, and what advice would you offer Catholic Herald readers to find hope and joy in their faith amidst today’s challenges?
+BPE: Where would you be — what would you have — indeed, what would you hope for, without the love of Jesus? Our Catholic faith is the most beautiful, precious and important gift in life. Immaculate Mary is the patroness of our diocese and so we know we are in good hands.
Visiting our Catholic schools is always a joy, and on my recent rounds we have been having a Holy Half Hour before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. It always brings tears to my eyes when the children, led by their teachers, pray earnestly in silence and then go on to sing the Tantum ergo and other hymns with such joy and gusto. Their openness to faith gives me real hope.
Photo credit: The Catholic Parish of Bishop’s Strortford
