‘A big heart and open doors’: Bishop-elect Stephen Wang on the Church of today

‘When we allow the Holy Spirit to transform our own hearts and our relationships, so that we’re loving one another, learning from each other, listening to each other and moving forward together, that allows the Church to fulfil its mission.’

Pope Leo XIV appointed Fr Stephen Wang as the new Bishop of Arundel & Brighton today.

Bishop-elect Wang told The Tablet it would be a “beautiful adventure”: I’m really excited about it. I will miss Rome very much, but it will be wonderful to be back home in England and to reconnect with the Church of England and Wales.”

He said his first priority would be “getting to know the diocese and the people”: “It’s fairly new to me. I’ve visited a few of the towns and know the diocese a little bit, but not a lot.

“I’m sure there’ll be a lot of time and energy to put into meeting people and getting to know them and the places. That will be the most important thing, along with praying with them, learning what’s going on for them, and them getting to know me as their bishop, and their friend as well.”

Fr Wang said he was looking forward to learning more about the unique opportunities and challenges facing the Church in England and Wales at the moment. In particular, he said there seems to be a renewed interest in faith, Christianity, and Catholicism: “That seems to be really genuine, and no one quite understands why it’s happening.

“How the Church responds to this core mission of welcoming and reaching out to people will be really important, along with how we engage with all the social issues – there are many deep and difficult social issues – and how we support each other to live the Christian faith.”

When it comes to people exploring faith for the first time, Fr Wang said, “I think we need to be really welcoming and opening to people, and to see that they’re coming from very different places.

“As a Church, we need to have a big heart and open doors, and a flexibility. This might not be tidy. We have to take seriously the questions people are asking and be prepared to enter into those questions and offer them the wisdom of the Church and of the scriptures.

“People are looking for something deep and serious: they’re looking for roots and depth. We can offer that, and we mustn’t be afraid of offering it. But then when we’ve started these conversations and people are enthusiastic and connected, we need to offer them a home and a community so that they can find a sense of belonging.

“That can be hard. Sometimes people are coming and they maybe are having some good discussions and classes, but how do they embed that into their lives, so their lives are transformed?

“How do they become part of the Catholic community and become engaged and committed, and feel that they belong and can develop those friendships that sustain people? That’s the next step.

“Openness, welcome, serious reflection and discussions, and then helping to create a community of belonging. Those are part of the rhythm of evangelisation and mission that’s needed.”

Referring to Magnifica Humanitas, Fr Wang said the Church should try to speak as creatively and intelligently as it can, and “not be afraid to get involved in things and draw from the wisdom of the Christian community”.

“It’s not just about the bishop giving answers from a sort of pulpit, it’s about the whole Church, the wisdom of the laity particularly – being able to create spaces so that wisdom can be shared, and bringing it into dialogue with the issues of the world,” he said.

“We’ve seen that with the recent document, creating a further discussion which is a sort virtuous circle.”

He said end-of-life issues are a key example of a topic where the Church must make itself heard. “There’s a link here even with the document about AI. The Church is not just speaking about single issues.

“It’s trying to give a vision of human life and the common good and the beauty of what human society and community life should look like.

“At the centre of that is human dignity: the different ways that human dignity can be threatened – but also the ways that it can be honoured, that people can be loved from their conception to their natural end.”

He continued: “The question of human dignity and AI is actually connected with the question of human dignity and end of life, because it’s all about loving the person and honouring the person, even in their weaknesses, frailty and suffering, giving them the love and hope of the Church.

“When you have that perspective, it makes everything different. I don’t want to pretend to be an expert in the great challenges of today, but I certainly think human dignity and the Church’s vision of common good connect with all the different issues that we’re facing at the moment.”

He said it can also help to inform discussions around climate change: “It’s about that fantastic phrase Pope Francis used: an integral ecology.

“It’s not just single things: it’s a vision of human life, creation, the environment, where everything is connected. The way we care for our creation, acting as stewards, and the way we care for one another: that will impact everything, and it will especially impact the poor.

“Everything that we can do to protect the environment and care for the poorest for the poor, every decision that someone can make in terms of economics or politics will always have ramifications in unexpected ways.

“The Church might not have the answer to every specific practical question, but it wants to keep this vision of integral ecology, a holistic vision of the goodness of God’s creation, and the impact of the decisions that policymakers have on every single person, especially the poor.”

Fr Wang echoed Pope Leo’s statement that synodality and evangelisation go together: “At heart, synodality is about relationships, about having a Church community that’s truly listening to God, to the scriptures, and to each other.

“When we allow the Holy Spirit to transform our own hearts and to transform our relationships, so that we’re loving one another, learning from each other, listening to each other and moving forward together, that allows the Church to fulfil its mission.

“It’s not just an individual evangeliser, it’s the Church moving forward to others, and drawing on the wisdom and resources of everyone in the community.

“Synodality often makes us think of the Universal Church and meetings in the Vatican, but it’s meant to be about the local Church first of all.

“If you have a parish or a school or a chaplaincy, and they’re living in a synodal way, truly listening to the Holy Spirit and to each other, the Holy Spirit will guide them to be missionaries and evangelists.

“The knock-on effect is that when people hear the good news, they’re not just hearing it from an individual but from a whole community that can welcome them.”

Bishop-elect Wang has been rector of the Venerable English College in Rome for the last five years. Before this, he served in roles including university chaplain at the London School of Economics, Dean of Studies at Allen Hall seminary, visiting priest at Wormwood Scrubs Prison, and vocations director of the Diocese of Westminster.

“I’ve had different experiences as a priest,” he said. “I’ve worked in parishes, prisons, hospitals, I’ve had a lot of time in university chaplaincies and seminaries.

“I’m sure that’s informed my heart, and there’s a thread running through all of it – true for all priests, not just for me – which is trying to be close to the people we’re sent to serve. Trying to love others and to be loved by others, to live closely with people.

“I’ve only been thinking about being a bishop for two days, but I hope as a bishop I can be a loving shepherd, spiritual father and brother to everyone in the diocese, everyone within the Church community – and, more than that, everyone within the vast geography of Arundel & Brighton.

“I hope that by being close to everyone and, by loving people and listening to people, I can learn what is most important for the diocese and for each of the communities.

“I hope I can support the parishes of the diocese, but equally the schools, the religious communities, the chaplaincies. There will be many communities in the diocese to get to know and I’m looking forward to supporting them all in a fatherly and brotherly way.”

A former student at Newman House, where Fr Wang was senior chaplain from 2013 to 2021, recalled, “He was a great chaplain in many ways: thoughtful, experienced, and a very good speaker who always managed to fill churches for Mass.

“He was always going the extra mile and has been working towards this new mission for a long time, so I’m sure he’ll be great.”

ITV presenter Julie Etchingham, who was friends with Fr Wang at university, said he is “a huge intellect, wonderful and wise man and great communicator”.

Archbishop of Westminster Richard Moth told The Tablet he was “delighted” for Arundel and Brighton. “Stephen’s going to bring so much, he’s a very good evangeliser, good communicator, he has a real thirst for sharing the message of the gospel.

“He’s shown with his care of the students at the English College his love of the priesthood, his care for the students in the seminary. He’ll bring all that to Arundel and Brighton. So I’m very pleased for my old patch.”

Fr Stephen Wang appointed new Bishop of Arundel & Brighton

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