London - The Archdiocese of Westminster is preparing to live through one of the most significant moments in its own life and in the ecclesial life of the United Kingdom: the Installation Mass of Archbishop Charles Phillip Richard Moth, the twelfth leader of Westminster. The principal celebration is scheduled for Saturday 14 February 2026 at 12 a.m., on the feast of Saints Cyril and Methodius, and will be preceded the day before by Solemn Pontifical Vespers (Friday 13 February, 5.30 p.m.) as a vigil of prayer and preparation for the whole diocese.
Friday 13 February: the vigil with Pontifical Vespers (5.30 p.m.)
The first public appointment linked to the Installation Mass is set for Friday 13 February 2026 at 5.30 p.m., when Pontifical Vespers will be prayed in the Cathedral. During the day, the Cathedral will remain open as usual until the end of Vespers; the 5.30 p.m. Mass will not be celebrated.
Before the Installation Mass, the diocese is invited to pray for the new Archbishop. The Office is taken from the Common of the Blessed Virgin Mary and invokes the intercession of Mary as Patron of the diocese, under the title Our Blessed Lady, the Immaculate Conception. During the entrance of the clergy towards the Sanctuary, the Litany of the Saints is sung, recalling not only the most venerated saints, but also those linked to the parishes, schools and religious communities of the diocesan territory.
Saturday 14 February: Lauds, Terce and Holy Mass
The heart of the event will be Saturday 14 February. The Cathedral will open at 9.30. In the morning, again for ticket-holders only, two moments of the Divine Office are scheduled: Lauds at 11.00 and Terce at 11.30; then, at 12.00, the Installation Mass.
The public prayer of the people of God is one of the Church’s primary tasks and, over the centuries, it has been organised to “sanctify the whole day” through the Divine Office. Lauds is the office intended to consecrate the morning; Terce, together with the other hours, serves as a liturgical remembrance of events linked to the Lord’s Passion and to the original moments of apostolic proclamation.
The rite of the Installation Mass: an “ancient form” preserved at Westminster
The Mass booklet explains that the Reception and Installation of the Archbishop of Westminster follows an ancient Catholic rite, already used - before the Reformation - for the reception and installation of the Archbishops of Canterbury. At Westminster, the protagonist of the rite of welcome is the Chapter, led by the Provost, who receives the Archbishop at the West Door for his first solemn entry into the Cathedral. The rite is drawn from a pontifical used at Canterbury in the time of Archbishop Chichele (1414–1443), preserved at the British Museum, and it became customary at Westminster from the Restoration of the Hierarchy (1850) and the appointment of Cardinal Nicholas Wiseman as the first Archbishop of Westminster.
The rite begins with the Archbishop’s arrival at the western door: at 12.00 the West Doors are opened, the Cathedral bell is rung, and the Archbishop kneels on the threshold. This gesture takes place surrounded by large marble medallions bearing the figures of twelve saints, all Archbishops of Canterbury. Then follows the meeting with the Provost, the veneration of the crucifix (which the Archbishop kisses) and the sprinkling with holy water, which the Archbishop uses on himself and then sprinkles the clergy and the faithful. The procession then moves towards the Sanctuary, where the Archbishop pauses in prayer before the altar.
The juridical-ecclesial moment of the Installation Mass passes through the presentation and reading of the Apostolic Letter. The Apostolic Nuncio, Miguel Maury Buendía, will present the parchment in Latin and the diocesan Chancellor (Canon Jeremy Trood) will read the English translation. Afterwards, the President of the Chapter will lead the Archbishop to the steps of the throne. The most symbolic and juridically crucial gesture is the handing over of the crosier: it will be brought to the foot of the throne by the Archbishop Emeritus, Cardinal Vincent Nichols, who will hand it to Archbishop Richard Moth; the new Archbishop responds by declaring his acceptance of the pastoral care and his commitment to faithful service of the Archdiocese. After the greeting of the Chapter and representatives of various ecclesial bodies, greetings are foreseen from ecumenical and civic representatives, with an address on behalf of Churches Together in England by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dame Sarah Mullally. The rite then continues with the rest of the Pontifical Mass.
The “material” signs of memory: vestments, silver, chalice. Framing the celebration there will also be vestments and liturgical objects that preserve the memory of the Church of Westminster. The vestments made in 2009, in gold fabric with motifs inspired by Byzantine design, will be used; the chalice destined for the new Archbishop, dated 1529, in gilt silver and therefore prior to the Reformation; and a set of liturgical silver - among them the crosier and various furnishings - associated with Cardinal Edward Henry Howard (1829–1892), with a history that points to Rome and to a long-standing ecclesial tradition.
The new Archbishop’s first appointments
On Sunday 15 February the new Archbishop will preside at the 12.00 Mass in the Cathedral, and on Wednesday 18 February, Ash Wednesday, he will preside at the 8.00 Mass with the imposition of ashes.
fr.A.S.
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