Portsmouth launches diocesan app

The Diocese of Portsmouth launched its own diocesan app on Easter Sunday in an effort to better involve parishioners in the life of the diocese.

The app is a digital guide to live events in the diocese and features maps and local information about Mass times, Eucharistic Adoration and Confession.

It has been specially designed to support Catholics in their daily prayer lives and includes reminders to pray at certain times of the day with a link to the Liturgy of the Hours.

Commenting on the new app, Bishop Philip Egan said: “I’m delighted to announce our new Diocesan App! It helps to bring the diocese and its communications right up to date, making things much more user-friendly.

“I wish to encourage all our clergy and parishioners to install it on their smartphone, iPad, tablet etc. It will be an invaluable practical help for knowing where the nearest parish is, maps and directions, the next Mass, the availability of the ‘nearest’ Sacrament of Reconciliation and so on.

“One of the features I’m really pleased with are the reminders that can be set up for certain times of the day to pray the Angelus and say the Divine Office. There is also a prayer section – I call all this ‘Catholic Mindfulness’ – with a Holy Half Hour with Eucharistic Adoration which means that anyone anywhere can ‘tune in’ for a few moments of prayer with Jesus in the Most Holy Eucharist.

“So I highly recommend this to our diocese and to anyone further afield too. It’s free to download. We’ll be adding lots of new features as time goes on, with a prayer station to Our Lady and a virtual candle-rack where we can ‘light’ a candle and offer a prayer.

“I hope and pray that the new Diocesan App will be a great tool of new evangelisation, helping us all grow in holiness and virtue, and proclaiming to a wider audience the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ.”

To download the app visit the App Store or Google Play App for Android phones, in the normal way and search for Portsmouth Roman Catholic Diocese.