ST JOSEPH'S PARISH
DORKING

News

Mass Times

Reaching Out

Funeral Information

Livestream

News

Mass Times

Reaching Out

Funeral Information

ST JOSEPH'S PARISH
DORKIN
G


You are very welcome!

Thank you for taking the time to visit our parish website. We are a very active Catholic community, seeking to share the gospel values as revealed to us by our saviour Jesus Christ. If you find yourself in the area, please do call in and celebrate Holy Mass with us. Our parish priest, Canon John Griffiths is very keen to meet with visitors to the parish.

You are very welcome!

St Joseph's is the Catholic Parish Church for Dorking and surrounding villages in the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton. 


We are an active welcoming community, offering spiritual and pastoral support for everyone, helping each other to grow in knowledge and love of our Catholic faith. We hope that you find the information on our Parish and its activities useful. 


Our Parish Mission Statement

Together with our Priest, we are united in our Catholic faith.

​We pray to the Holy Spirit to guide us in our service of God and our 

service of each other.

As a parish we strive to be a warm, welcoming and forward looking community.


Parish Halls

St Joseph’s is blessed with having two interconnecting halls, a large kitchen and toilet facilities. 

Either one or other of these halls is available for hire either on a regular or one-off basis typically at a cost of £35 per hour. 

Special dispensation to this charge is available at the discretion of the Parish Priest. 

If you are interested in using this facility please contact us or by phone on 01306 882433.




Our latest parish weekly news, notices and events below

Download the parish Newsletter Here

By Webmaster February 15, 2026
PARISH REPOSITORY / BOOK STALL : - Is something perhaps, which we take for granted in the church narthex, but which has been looked after and managed for many years by one person with assistance from others. Given the passage of time, it would be appreciated if a couple of people would assist in learning of how to manage and order items for the repository with a view to taking on the role in due time. If you would be willing to help withs, please e-mail the parish office with your details, which will then be passed on to the current manager. Many thanks.
By Webmaster February 2, 2026
Next weekend there is a second collection to support the pilgrimage, for which ‘Lourdes Pilgrimage envelopes’ are available at the entrances to the church.
By Webmaster January 18, 2026
From THE SOCIETY FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE UNBORN CHILD:- After a two-year delay, the Government have finally published the official abortion statistics for 2023. The results are shocking but not surprising. There were 277,970 terminations recorded, an 11% increase on the year before. These are the highest numbers of abortions in the UK’s history, nearly 300,000 per year across all four nations - a figure never envisaged when the legislation was first passed. There is also a rise in pills by post abortions - 200,745 abortions involved taking both abortion drugs at home, 72% of the total. You can read our full press release here . These appalling figures come as peers are due to debate the biggest expansion of abortion since 1967 - allowing self-induced abortion up to birth. As you know, the House of Lords will debate Clause 191 to the Crime and Policing Bill in the coming weeks - either on 27th January or 2nd February. Amendments tabled at Committee Stage include removing Clause 191 from the Bill entirely, ending the pills by post policy, and mandatory investigations for underage abortions. Please write to members of the House of Lords and ask them to fight the extreme abortion up to birth amendment. We must work to stop these horrendous statistics rising still higher. If this change goes through, key protections for women and babies will be removed. Please use our tool to contact members of the House of Lords. It will generate a Peer at random for you to write to, and bring up an editable template. Please edit this template to put it in your own words, and to include your own concerns and experiences. Once you have finished your letter, it will be emailed to you to print off and send to the Peer by post . Alternatively, you can opt to send your message by email, though paper letters are always more impactful than emails. The SPUC tool can be found at:- Fight the latest attempts to decriminalise abortion - SPUC You can contact as many Peers as you are able to (but send the letters in separate envelopes).
Show More
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Thanks to all those of you who provided goodies last Sunday and to all those who supported the coffee and cakes; we are pleased to say the necessary £50 donation for the Surrey Churches Preservation Society was surpassed and the made.  Further, we are delighted that SCPS have advised that a preliminary grant towards the cost of the scaffold tower shall been given with a further grant towards the cost of repair works being additionally advised.
By Webmaster March 23, 2026
Worth a read:- a report from the ‘Centre for Social Justice’  https://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2025/03/CSJ-The_Lost_Boys.pdf
By Webmaster February 15, 2026
Our thanks to all those of you who contribute to the parish through the ‘Gift Aid Scheme’ by whatever means. As you may be aware, for every declare £1.00 contributed by a tax-payer to the parish as part of a Registered Charity, generates a further 25 pence, so your £4.00 becomes £5.00 at no extra cost to you. As we approach a new tax year, and if you are a tax-payer contributing to the parish and are not in the gift aid scheme, might we encourage you to join it, please? Many thanks.
By Webmaster January 18, 2026
If you would like to contribute to the food bank, the Food Bank Box is by the side door of the Church and is for contributions of appropriate products as listed, which are gratefully received. The box is emptied regularly and the products are delivered to the local Food Bank Depot, where they are labelled and St Josephs Parish is acknowledged. Should you wish to help with the Food Bank a few more people are needed to assist occasionally with the weekly collection when the regular collectors are away. Please see our own parish website under the heading ‘Churches Together in Dorking at: https://www.sjcc.org.uk/churches-together-dorking Volunteers would need to have their own transport to get the products to the actual food bank depot. Please let Maria know if you’re willing to help. For further details about the foodbank, please see their website at: Dorking Area Foodbank | Helping Local People in Crisis
By Webmaster January 12, 2026
The Pastoral Plan – The Word Who is Life (From Fr. Chris Bergin):- “Bishop Richard’s appointment as the next Archbishop of Westminster means there are some immediate consequences for us regarding the implementation of the Pastoral Plan in the Epsom Deanery. Whilst some things, by Church Law, are put on hold until a new Bishop arrives – particularly any decision to combine the existing nine parishes into one new parish – other key elements of the Plan remain as important for us as ever; prayer, formation and mission continue to be the priorities that shape our pastoral life. Whilst the parishioner meetings around the nine parishes will not now go ahead as planned (as a significant factor in the planning for these – particularly the timetable – was the proposed changes to structure), the Parish Leadership Team will be working on proposals to enable us to continue our reflections on mission, to celebrate and develop co-operation between our parish communities, and continue to invite all parishioners to get involved. You’ll be able to hear more about this in the next Deanery newsletter which will be available next weekend, 17th/18th January.” Additionally, there's a piece on the Diocesan website about what happens (and doesn't happen) during sede vacante which may be of help: Sede Vacante: Next steps for the Diocese of Arundel & Brighton | News

Fr. Ian Prayer requests:  Please remember those who are sick in your daily prayers:  please pray for our recently bereaved

You are very welcome!

St Joseph's is the Catholic Parish Church for Dorking and surrounding villages in the Diocese of Arundel and Brighton. 


We are an active welcoming community, offering spiritual and pastoral support for everyone, helping each other to grow in knowledge and love of our Catholic faith. We hope that you find the information on our Parish and its activities useful. 


Our Parish Mission Statement

Together with our Priest, we are united in our Catholic faith.

​We pray to the Holy Spirit to guide us in our service of God and our 

service of each other.

As a parish we strive to be a warm, welcoming and forward looking community.


Parish Halls

St Joseph’s is blessed with having two interconnecting halls, a large kitchen and toilet facilities.

Either one or other of these halls is available for hire either on a regular or one-off basis typically at a cost of £35 per hour.

Special dispensation to this charge is available at the discretion of the Parish Priest.

If you are interested in using this facility please contact us or by phone on 01306 882433.


By Webmaster February 15, 2026
PARISH REPOSITORY / BOOK STALL : - Is something perhaps, which we take for granted in the church narthex, but which has been looked after and managed for many years by one person with assistance from others. Given the passage of time, it would be appreciated if a couple of people would assist in learning of how to manage and order items for the repository with a view to taking on the role in due time. If you would be willing to help withs, please e-mail the parish office with your details, which will then be passed on to the current manager. Many thanks.
By Webmaster February 2, 2026
Next weekend there is a second collection to support the pilgrimage, for which ‘Lourdes Pilgrimage envelopes’ are available at the entrances to the church.
By Webmaster January 18, 2026
From THE SOCIETY FOR THE PROTECTION OF THE UNBORN CHILD:- After a two-year delay, the Government have finally published the official abortion statistics for 2023. The results are shocking but not surprising. There were 277,970 terminations recorded, an 11% increase on the year before. These are the highest numbers of abortions in the UK’s history, nearly 300,000 per year across all four nations - a figure never envisaged when the legislation was first passed. There is also a rise in pills by post abortions - 200,745 abortions involved taking both abortion drugs at home, 72% of the total. You can read our full press release here . These appalling figures come as peers are due to debate the biggest expansion of abortion since 1967 - allowing self-induced abortion up to birth. As you know, the House of Lords will debate Clause 191 to the Crime and Policing Bill in the coming weeks - either on 27th January or 2nd February. Amendments tabled at Committee Stage include removing Clause 191 from the Bill entirely, ending the pills by post policy, and mandatory investigations for underage abortions. Please write to members of the House of Lords and ask them to fight the extreme abortion up to birth amendment. We must work to stop these horrendous statistics rising still higher. If this change goes through, key protections for women and babies will be removed. Please use our tool to contact members of the House of Lords. It will generate a Peer at random for you to write to, and bring up an editable template. Please edit this template to put it in your own words, and to include your own concerns and experiences. Once you have finished your letter, it will be emailed to you to print off and send to the Peer by post . Alternatively, you can opt to send your message by email, though paper letters are always more impactful than emails. The SPUC tool can be found at:- Fight the latest attempts to decriminalise abortion - SPUC You can contact as many Peers as you are able to (but send the letters in separate envelopes).
By Webmaster November 22, 2025
A Day of Reflection for Ministers of the Word – Saturday 24 January 2026 11-4pm at St Michael’s church, High Salvington , Worthing BN13 3AL Cost: £40 Mental Health Awareness training – Saturday 7 February 2026 10-3pm at the St Philip Howard Centre, Crawley. Please see the Diocesan web site for further details:- Home | Arundel & Brighton Diocese

 Please check the  current newsletter  for any changes to mass times

By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Thanks to all those of you who provided goodies last Sunday and to all those who supported the coffee and cakes; we are pleased to say the necessary £50 donation for the Surrey Churches Preservation Society was surpassed and the made.  Further, we are delighted that SCPS have advised that a preliminary grant towards the cost of the scaffold tower shall been given with a further grant towards the cost of repair works being additionally advised.
By Webmaster March 23, 2026
Worth a read:- a report from the ‘Centre for Social Justice’  https://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2025/03/CSJ-The_Lost_Boys.pdf
By Webmaster February 15, 2026
Our thanks to all those of you who contribute to the parish through the ‘Gift Aid Scheme’ by whatever means. As you may be aware, for every declare £1.00 contributed by a tax-payer to the parish as part of a Registered Charity, generates a further 25 pence, so your £4.00 becomes £5.00 at no extra cost to you. As we approach a new tax year, and if you are a tax-payer contributing to the parish and are not in the gift aid scheme, might we encourage you to join it, please? Many thanks.

The Sacrament of Reconciliation / Confession

Available after the Saturday morning Mass and from 5.15 to 5.45 Saturday afternoon.

Each Saturday Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament & the Rosary follow on from Mass until 11.00am.


Our latest parish weekly news, notices and events

Keep informed about parish activities on a week by week basis. Our important activities can be seen featured below, and found on our Parish Newsletter - available online here, or in print at the back of the church.

Fr. Ian's  Prayer requests:  Please remember those who are sick in your daily prayers.

If you would like to add someone to the list, please email the parish office   through this link or email the parish direct  (on the newsletter)

New Paragraph

By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Thanks to all those of you who provided goodies last Sunday and to all those who supported the coffee and cakes; we are pleased to say the necessary £50 donation for the Surrey Churches Preservation Society was surpassed and the made.  Further, we are delighted that SCPS have advised that a preliminary grant towards the cost of the scaffold tower shall been given with a further grant towards the cost of repair works being additionally advised.
By Webmaster March 23, 2026
Worth a read:- a report from the ‘Centre for Social Justice’  https://www.centreforsocialjustice.org.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2025/03/CSJ-The_Lost_Boys.pdf
By Webmaster February 15, 2026
Our thanks to all those of you who contribute to the parish through the ‘Gift Aid Scheme’ by whatever means. As you may be aware, for every declare £1.00 contributed by a tax-payer to the parish as part of a Registered Charity, generates a further 25 pence, so your £4.00 becomes £5.00 at no extra cost to you. As we approach a new tax year, and if you are a tax-payer contributing to the parish and are not in the gift aid scheme, might we encourage you to join it, please? Many thanks.
By Webmaster January 18, 2026
If you would like to contribute to the food bank, the Food Bank Box is by the side door of the Church and is for contributions of appropriate products as listed, which are gratefully received. The box is emptied regularly and the products are delivered to the local Food Bank Depot, where they are labelled and St Josephs Parish is acknowledged. Should you wish to help with the Food Bank a few more people are needed to assist occasionally with the weekly collection when the regular collectors are away. Please see our own parish website under the heading ‘Churches Together in Dorking at: https://www.sjcc.org.uk/churches-together-dorking Volunteers would need to have their own transport to get the products to the actual food bank depot. Please let Maria know if you’re willing to help. For further details about the foodbank, please see their website at: Dorking Area Foodbank | Helping Local People in Crisis

Latest News

Prayers of the Saints

Important Notices

By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Thanks to all those of you who provided goodies last Sunday and to all those who supported the coffee and cakes; we are pleased to say the necessary £50 donation for the Surrey Churches Preservation Society was surpassed and the made.  Further, we are delighted that SCPS have advised that a preliminary grant towards the cost of the scaffold tower shall been given with a further grant towards the cost of repair works being additionally advised.
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
CONFIRMATION PROGRAMME 2025 /2026 Will continue after the schools Easter holiday on Thursday 16th April at 7 pm in the small hall. Many thanks for arriving promptly.

MASS & MEET

The next event will be on Friday 10 April 2026. There will be No Mass. All are welcome!  12:30pm

NEWS ADDITIONS, UPDATES & FEEDBACK

We encourage parishioners to submit articles or information that you feel  appropriate for our news section. Please send details to the parish office through the link below.

By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Our programme continues this Monday 20th April, when we look at the sacrament of Baptism. Please note we will begin at the earlier time of 7.00 pm; all are welcome.
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Martin Stebbings, on behalf of Group 17 writes:- May I/we thank all those very kind and generous parishioners who have donated to the Just Giving page over the past few weeks. The response has been amazing, and I thank you whole-heartedly. Again, I would be very happy to take prayer petitions or intentions from parishioners. If you would like me to carry an intention to the Grotto on your behalf, please feel free to pass it on before the Easter Tridium Weekend. As previously mentioned, please keep all our pilgrims in your prayers, and be assured of mine for you when I travel to Lourdes at Easter.  Thank you. Martin Stebbings
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
If you haven’t already done so, but would still like to commit to praying a decade of the Rosary each day during February, then please do put your initial or a tick in one of the boxes on the ‘Rosary Circle’ chart in the church porch.  The ‘Chart’ lists the 20 decades of the Rosary and a number of columns for people to put their initial or a tick in a box to indicate they will commit to praying the particular decade each day for the month of February, and hopefully, this will create a number of ‘circles’ praying for this intention. This is a very simple spiritual exercise many of us could join in with; at least 20 people praying one decade of the Rosary each day, so the whole of the Rosary is prayed for this particular intention, thus creating a ‘Rosary Circle’. Let it be said, however, that anyone can join the Rosary Circles at any time.
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Youth Group at St Joseph’s will begin on Thursday 23rd April and will meet fortnightly from 6:00–8:00pm in the Church Hall (dinner provided). The group is open to young people in Years 6 to 11, offering a welcoming space to build friendships, have fun, and explore faith and life together. More details and registration information will be shared shortly. Thank you for your encouragement and please continue to keep this initiative in your prayers. Kathia, Lucy, Matthew and Denzyl
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Our programme continues this Monday 20th April, when we look at the sacrament of Baptism. Please note we will begin at the earlier time of 7.00 pm; all are welcome.
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
Martin Stebbings, on behalf of Group 17 writes:- May I/we thank all those very kind and generous parishioners who have donated to the Just Giving page over the past few weeks. The response has been amazing, and I thank you whole-heartedly. Again, I would be very happy to take prayer petitions or intentions from parishioners. If you would like me to carry an intention to the Grotto on your behalf, please feel free to pass it on before the Easter Tridium Weekend. As previously mentioned, please keep all our pilgrims in your prayers, and be assured of mine for you when I travel to Lourdes at Easter.  Thank you. Martin Stebbings
By Webmaster March 29, 2026
If you haven’t already done so, but would still like to commit to praying a decade of the Rosary each day during February, then please do put your initial or a tick in one of the boxes on the ‘Rosary Circle’ chart in the church porch.  The ‘Chart’ lists the 20 decades of the Rosary and a number of columns for people to put their initial or a tick in a box to indicate they will commit to praying the particular decade each day for the month of February, and hopefully, this will create a number of ‘circles’ praying for this intention. This is a very simple spiritual exercise many of us could join in with; at least 20 people praying one decade of the Rosary each day, so the whole of the Rosary is prayed for this particular intention, thus creating a ‘Rosary Circle’. Let it be said, however, that anyone can join the Rosary Circles at any time.

Parish Events

OUR EVENTS CALENDAR

Remember to check our events calendar for all of the activities happening within the parish

MASS AND MEET

 The next event will be on Friday 10 April 2026    There will be No Mass.  All are welcome!   12:30pm