Alan Stephen Hopes (born 17 March 1944) is a British

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

, and former

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

priest. From 2013 - 2022 he served as the

Bishop of East Anglia The Bishop of East Anglia is the Ordinary (Catholic Church), Ordinary of the modern Roman Catholic Diocese of East Anglia in the Province of Westminster, England. The incumbent is Bishop Peter Collins (bishop), Peter Collins, who was installed o ...

and is currently the Apostolic Administrator of the same diocese until the installation of his successor on 14 December 2022. He previously served as an auxiliary bishop of

Westminster Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Bu ...

and

titular bishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

Cuncacestre Cuncacestre (Chester-le-Street) was a seat of the Anglo Saxon Bishop of Lindisfarne, and subsists as a Roman Catholic titular see. Start of the Diocese The church was established to house the body of Cuthbert of Lindisfarne, Bishop of Lindisfa ...

. He is an Honorary Fellow of

St Edmund's College, Cambridge St Edmund's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. Founded in 1896, it is the second-oldest of the four Cambridge colleges oriented to mature students, which accept only students reading for postgraduate degr ...

Early life and education

Hopes was born in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, England on 17 March 1944. He was educated at Oxford High School until he moved to

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1956, when he attended

Enfield Grammar School Enfield Grammar School (abbreviated to EGS; also known as Enfield Grammar) is a boys' Comprehensive school and sixth form with academy status, founded in 1558, situated in Enfield Town in the London Borough of Enfield in North London. Histo ...

. In 1963 he began a degree in theology at

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

, graduating in 1966. He then attended Warminster Theological College, an

theological college to train for ministry in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...

Anglican ministry

Hopes was ordained as an

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

in 1968. Hopes served as a priest in the

until 1994. He was

Vicar A vicar (; Latin: ''vicarius'') is a representative, deputy or substitute; anyone acting "in the person of" or agent for a superior (compare "vicarious" in the sense of "at second hand"). Linguistically, ''vicar'' is cognate with the English pref ...

of St Paul's Church, Tottenham from 1978 to 1994.

Roman Catholic ministry

Priesthood

In 1994, he was received into the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He was ordained a

Roman Catholic priest The priesthood is the office of the ministers of religion, who have been commissioned ("ordained") with the Holy orders of the Catholic Church. Technically, bishops are a priestly order as well; however, in layman's terms ''priest'' refers only ...

on 4 December 1995. For three years he served as assistant priest at Our Lady of Victories in

Kensington Kensington is a district in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in the West End of London, West of Central London. The district's commercial heart is Kensington High Street, running on an east–west axis. The north-east is taken up b ...

, London, before becoming parish priest of the Holy Redeemer and St Thomas More Parish,

Chelsea Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to: Places Australia * Chelsea, Victoria Canada * Chelsea, Nova Scotia * Chelsea, Quebec United Kingdom * Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames ** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...

. In 2001, Hopes was appointed

Vicar General A vicar general (previously, archdeacon) is the principal deputy of the bishop of a diocese for the exercise of administrative authority and possesses the title of local ordinary. As vicar of the bishop, the vicar general exercises the bishop's ...

of the

Archdiocese of Westminster The Catholic Diocese of Westminster is an archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in England. The diocese consists of most of London north of the River Thames and west of the River Lea, the borough of Spelthorne (in Surrey), and th ...

and in 2002 became a member of the

Bishops' Conference An episcopal conference, sometimes called a conference of bishops, is an official assembly of the bishops of the Catholic Church in a given territory. Episcopal conferences have long existed as informal entities. The first assembly of bishops to ...

Committee for Liturgy and Worship.

Episcopate

On 4 January 2003, at the age of 58, he was appointed an auxiliary bishop of Westminster, making him one of the most senior members of Catholic clergy to have converted in the 1990s. On 24 January 2003 he received episcopal consecration, along with the now Archbishop

Bernard Longley Bernard Longley (born 5 April 1955) is an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He was named the Archbishop of Birmingham on 1 October 2009, and installed on 8 December 2009. Early life and ministry Bernard Longley was born in Opensh ...

, in

Westminster Cathedral Westminster Cathedral is the mother church of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. It is the largest Catholic church in the UK and the seat of the Archbishop of Westminster. The site on which the cathedral stands in the City of ...

from Cardinal

Cormac Murphy-O'Connor Cormac Murphy-O'Connor (24 August 1932 – 1 September 2017) was a British cardinal, the Archbishop of Westminster and president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. He was made cardinal by Pope John Paul II in 2001. He sub ...

. The principal co-consecrating bishops were Bishop

Arthur Roche Arthur Roche (born 6 March 1950) is an English cardinal of the Catholic Church who has served as prefect of the Congregation for Divine Worship since 2021. He previously served as secretary of the congregation from 2012 to 2021. Prior to his s ...

of Leeds and Bishop

Kieran Conry Kieran Thomas Conry (born 1 February 1951) is a Roman Catholic bishop. He was the Bishop of Arundel and Brighton from 2001 until his resignation in 2014. Early life and ordination Conry was born in Coventry and educated at All Souls Roman Ca ...

of Arundel and Brighton. As an auxiliary bishop, Hopes had particular pastoral oversight of the deaneries of West London. In October 2010, Hopes was appointed as episcopal delegate of the Catholic

Bishops' Conference of England and Wales The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales (CBCEW) is the episcopal conference of the Catholic Church in England and Wales. Overview The Catholic Bishops' Conference of England and Wales is the permanent assembly of Catholic Church, ...

for the implementation of the apostolic constitution ''

Anglicanorum coetibus A personal ordinariate for former Anglicans, shortened as personal ordinariate or Anglican ordinariate,"...the liturgies approved for the Anglican ordinariates..." "Bishop Stephen Lopes of the Anglican Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter..." i ...

''. On 11 June 2013,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

appointed Hopes the fourth

and installed on 16 July 2013 at St John the Baptist Cathedral, Norwich. In 2014, Hopes celebrated a historic

Pontifical High Mass A Pontifical High Mass, also called Solemn Pontifical Mass, is a Solemn or High Mass celebrated by a bishop using certain prescribed ceremonies. Although in modern English the word "pontifical" is almost exclusively associated with the pope, an ...

at the throne in his cathedral, for

All Saints' Day All Saints' Day, also known as All Hallows' Day, the Feast of All Saints, the Feast of All Hallows, the Solemnity of All Saints, and Hallowmas, is a Christian solemnity celebrated in honour of all the saints of the church, whether they are know ...

. In June 2015, Bishop Hopes visited the

Port of Felixstowe The Port of Felixstowe, in Felixstowe, Suffolk, is the United Kingdom's busiest container port, dealing with 48% of Britain's containerised trade. In 2017, it was ranked as 43rd busiest container port in the world and 8th in Europe, with a han ...

at the invitation of

Apostleship of the Sea The Apostleship of the Sea is an agency of the Catholic Church. It is also sometimes known as ''Stella Maris'' (Star of the Sea), and its patron is the Virgin Mary as Our Lady, Star of the Sea. Founded in Glasgow, Scotland in the early 20th centur ...

. He went on board two ships and met with seafarers and blessed them. He also celebrated Mass at the port chapel. On 28 October 2016 he was appointed by

a member of the

Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments it, Dicastero per il Culto Divino e la Disciplina dei Sacramenti , type = Dicastery , seal = Coat of arms Holy See.svg , seal_size = 100px , seal_caption = Coat of arms of the Holy See , logo = , p ...

. Pope Francis accepted his resignation on 11 October 2022 on the grounds of having reached the retirement age of 75, and appointed Peter Collins from the Archdiocese of Cardiff as his successor. His replacement is due to be installed on 14 December 2022. Pope Francis named him Apostolic Administrator to oversee the diocese until his successor is installted.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hopes, Bishop Alan 1944 births Living people Alumni of King's College London Associates of King's College People from Oxford Anglican priest converts to Roman Catholicism 20th-century English Anglican priests People educated at Enfield Grammar School 21st-century Roman Catholic bishops in England 21st-century Roman Catholic titular bishops Alumni of St Boniface Missionary College, Warminster Members of the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments Roman Catholic bishops of East Anglia English Roman Catholic bishops