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For many Catholics, leaving a gift in their Will offers a final opportunity leave a lasting gift to God and ensure a legacy of faith lives on after they are gone. Each year we are blessed to receive gifts from generous parishioners who leave a gift in their Will to their church or parish, the Diocese, Arundel Cathedral or the Lourdes Pilgrimage. These gifts enable the vital formation and care of our priests, maintain our beautiful church buildings and support our family of faith in their mission to form “communities of saints [and] strong, lively and welcoming schools of discipleship, where all know the riches of the Faith.” (Pastoral Plan, 2024).
Any legacy gift (also sometimes referred to a “gift in a Will” or a “bequest”), no matter how small, makes a difference and is a wonderful way to inspire and support the flourishing of the Church for future generations.
A legacy gift to your church or parish may express gratitude and stewardship for the guidance, comfort, and community your parish has provided, and support the Church’s mission, helping to ensure that future generations experience the same spiritual home. A gift to the Diocese could help to support sick or retired priests, the work of Catholic Education, the care and training of future priests, or the formation and social justice mission of the Diocese. Gifts to Arundel Cathedral can help to maintain and preserve the mother church of our Diocese for future generations, with a gift to the diocesan Lourdes Pilgrimage helping sick pilgrims and those who care for them to make the journey to Lourdes.
We encourage anyone considering leaving a gift in their Will to speak to a solicitor or legal professional, so that they can advise and guide you through the process, and ensure that your wishes are carried out with care.
You do not need to be wealthy to leave a legacy gift in your Will, even a 1% gift makes a huge difference and means that those closest to you still inherit 99% of your estate. Gifts to registered charities – which includes Diocese and its church communities - are exempt from Inheritance Tax and will be deducted from the value of your estate before Inheritance Tax (if applicable) is calculated.
To make leaving a legacy gift as simple as possible and ensure your wishes are honoured exactly as you intend, the Church provides suggested legal wording for gifts in Wills. This wording is not a legal document in itself but a guide to help your solicitor or legal adviser include the gift correctly in your Will alongside your other wishes. Using suggested wording provides peace of mind that your gift is clearly understood and legally valid and ensures:
• Your Church, Parish, the Diocese, Arundel Cathedral or the Lourdes Pilgrimage receive your gift in the way you intend.
• Your legacy supports the work and mission of the Church and the beauty of our Faith for many years to come.
The legal wording for each type of gift can be downloaded by clicking on the buttons below:
A Foundation Mass offers a quiet yet powerful opportunity to create a spiritual legacy, with the donor entrusting their intentions to the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The Mass can be offered in your memory, in memory of a loved one, or for another intention close to your heart. The Mass will usually be celebrated in a church of your choice, once a year for 25 years, on a date that is meaningful to you.
In the same way that you can ask a priest to say Mass for a particular intention, and normally offer him a “Mass stipend”, not for the sacrament itself – which is free – but given in support of the priest’s livelihood, a Foundation Mass is a Mass for your intention, requested in advance. The minimum bequest for a Foundation Mass is £300.
You can arrange a Foundation Mass at any time by contacting your parish priest. For information on how to include a request for a Foundation Mass in your Will, please click on the button below.
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