Arundel Cathedral of Our Lady and St. Philip Howard

Introduction

The church opened on 1st July 1873 with a dedication to Saint Philip Neri. In 1965 Saint Philip's became the cathedral of the new diocese of Arundel and Brighton. The dedication was changed to Our Lady and Saint Philip Howard in 1973.

Architecture and furnishings

The architectural style is French Gothic of about 1400. The nave is 71ft 9ins high, 33ft wide, and 97ft long with six bays. The nave has a cross-groined vault of chalk alternating with Bath stone.

The church has ashlar walls and vaults and a pitched slate roof. The church is surrounded on north and west sides by a stylobate with ashlar piers.

The organ was built for Saint John's Catholic Church, Islington, and installed at Arundel in 1875. The Blessed Sacrament Chapel was originally designed as a Chapel of Saint Joseph.

The carved Victorian Cross hanging in the apse was a gift in 1979 from the Priory of Our Lady of Good Counsel. The two ambos are built of Bath stone, the gospel side with Papal insignia and the epistle side with the arms of the Earl Marshal.

The west facade has figures of Christ and his Apostles and a sculpted Mary with her Divine Child at the apex of the portal. The spire was not completed; only the base forming the north-west porch was built. The church has a slender flèche over the sanctuary.

The cathedral has a bishop's chair with canopy at the right of the sanctuary. The carved bosses in the sanctuary ceiling represent God the Father, Christ, the Paschal Lamb, the Holy Spirit, Our Lady and Saint Joseph.

Music and liturgy

Roundels carved below the organ gallery depict angels with musical instruments, while the two larger roundels show Saint Cecilia, patroness of musicians, and a pope who fostered plainsong.

Parish life

The Cathedral hosts a programme of choral and other concerts, especially during the Arundel Festival season in late August. The Sir Malcolm Sargent Choir, made up of volunteer choristers, performs at the Cathedral and gives its takings to a cancer charity. A weekly newsletter provides the latest information to everyone attending Mass at the Cathedral and at The Poor Clares Convent. The Parish Proclaimer magazine is published four times a year for local parishioners who attend weekend Masses at the Cathedral or Poor Clares Convent.

Cathedral Centre is the newly named and restored parish hall, serving as the venue for social activities and events for the parish community. Cathedral parishioners, through voluntary groups, actively support charities to help raise funds and profile for good causes. The best-known annual festivity at Arundel Cathedral is the Corpus Christi celebration in late May or early June.

The Blessed Sacrament is reserved in the veiled tabernacle for the Communion of the Sick and for the devotion of the people. The Cathedral offers live streaming of services via Church Services TV.