Catholic Deanery of Eastbourne and St Leonards

Introducing the Catenians

Who are the Catenians?

Back in 1908, the then Bishop of Salford wanted a club formed of like-minded Catholic men to offer each other friendship within their faith, to support each other in these friendships and thus to strengthen their group commitment to each other and to the Church. This initiative quickly gained traction in Salford and then Manchester. It kept growing. Soon there were Catenian groups in Hastings, Eastbourne and throughout East and West Sussex. Thousands of Catholic men across Great Britain formed similar local groups and involved their wives and families. Each man soon realised the value of Catenian membership. A century later, the Catenian Association has spread to other parts of the globe and, whilst adapting to our modern world it continues to foster friendship and support among its members. New members have always been welcomed. If you would like to make new like-minded friends do call or email.

Getting together

Local Catenians from some ten miles or so around Hastings & Bexhill meet monthly and another group meets in Eastbourne. Meetings are for Catenians but are then followed by an informal, very social gathering or dinner which many wives and visitors also attend. Wives and the widows of Catenians are always welcome at our social gatherings and dinners, as are our families.

Friendship in Faith

The Catenians are not political and in no way a pressure group. We are a group of Catholic social friends. The twin purposes of Catenians are simply friendship and to lend support to each other in the practise of our faith. Fund raising is not our primary purpose but we do support charities and last year alone we social Catenians raised and donated over £250,000 for good causes.

We do wonderful things for Catholic Young People

The Catenian Bursary Fund gives financial support to young Catholics from all over Great Britain who volunteer to do something wonderful and help those less fortunate than themselves. Whether on an acceptable individual project, or an organised scheme with others or even if they are planning to travel to Lourdes to help an assisted pilgrim — Catenians like to help young people to achieve their aims.
The Catenian Association sponsors FLAME, bringing together Catholic young people at Wembley every two years. It is filled with inspiring speakers, incredible live music, prayer, adoration and the chance to be at church with 10,000 other young Catholics each experiencing something they can experience nowhere else.
The Catenian Association National Public Speaking Competition is an annual event where students aged 16–18 from Catholic schools compete in public speaking. The competition aims to develop students’ confidence and presentational skills. It features regional heats within each of the 18 Catenian Provinces, culminating in a national final in Manchester.