Bishop Kevin Dunn, a priest of the Archdiocese of Birmingham, was appointed Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle by Blessed John Paul II.  He was ordained the twelfth Bishop of Hexham and Newcastle, by Bishop Ambrose Griffiths on 25 May 2004, the Feast of St Bede, at St Mary’s Cathedral, Newcastle upon Tyne.  He died on Saturday 1 March 2008, aged 57.

Kevin Dunn was born in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire. He studied for the priesthood at St Mary’s College Oscott, Birmingham and was ordained  on 17 January 1976.

During the lecture Archbishop Nichols said: “One suggestion from me: every radio and TV set has an ‘on/off’ switch. Perhaps we should use it more often and free ourselves from too much input, from the constant round of news and debate, so as to reflect a little more and then deepen the quality of our understanding and of the contribution we can make. Too much input and there is no time or space for reflection. A little more stillness, space and silence and then the ‘still, small voice’ of faith will find its power.”

Here is the full text of the lecture given by Archbishop Vincent Nichols:

The Most Reverend Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster.

I am very pleased to be here to give this Bishop Kevin Dunn Memorial Lecture. It is an honour. Along with so many of you gathered here today, I have the fondest memories of Bishop Kevin. Indeed, I still miss his presence, his vitality and his down-to-earth approach to our faith and Church. I extend my warmest greetings to his family and close friends and assure them of my continuing prayers.

Kevin would have approved of the title given to this talk: Faith finding a voice. He wanted to get on with the job while at the same time thinking carefully about what it entailed and demanded. He wanted action rather than talk, and that must be a criterion we use for ourselves, including for this evening. I hope we can go from here with some resolution carrying us towards action.

In this setting it is right to recall one particular and remarkable action taken by Bishop Kevin: the establishment of the Bede Chair of Catholic Theology in the University of Durham. That truly was a lasting achievement and one which indeed typifies the importance of our theme.

Bishop Kevin was determined that our Catholic faith would indeed find a particular voice in the University and in the local Church. And, to its credit, the University responded so positively, and continues to do so. So do not be surprised if I return to your beloved Bede later in this talk.

As we begin to ponder on various aspects of the challenge of faith finding a voice in our world today, it is important to recall the wonderful, well-known reflection of St Augustine, given in reference to the role of St John the Baptist. Augustine insists that we understand the difference between what is said and who is saying it. He says:

‘John is the voice, but the Lord in the beginning was the Word. John is a voice for a time but Christ is the eternal Word from the beginning.’ (eg Sermon 293 cf Office of Readings for Feast of the Birth of St. John the Baptist.)

There are a number of important points for us here. First is the realisation that in finding a voice, faith – my faith, your faith – must seek to express only the Word of God, the person of Jesus. It is to him that we wish to give voice, not to ourselves.

This is not as easy as it sounds. Our whole frame of mind, shaped by the very air we breathe, is that we want to give voice to ourselves, to our own ideas and thoughts, to the insights we believe are rather special to ourselves. We want to have our signature on what we say.

So this has to be born in mind throughout our exploration: He is the Word, we, in all our different circumstances, are only the voice.

Then there is a second point made by St Augustine: we are a voice – or voices – for a time; He is the Word for all eternity. Our voice is crucial, for it is the voice for this day and age. So we have to work hard at understanding the day and the age so that our voice has a certain coherence, so that what we say ‘makes sense’. But in doing so we have to remember that the Word to which we are giving voice has an unchanging truth, an abiding grasp on reality that we, of ourselves, cannot achieve.

There is a tension here, of course. On the one hand is our creativity. We are properly explorers, adventurers even, wanting to bring to the surface, to bring into the public eye, what has been seemingly lost or hidden. Yet in all of this we are not creators of the reality we seek. Rather we are creatures of that reality who is Himself our creator.  So our own creativity is at the service of given truth, a given goodness, a given beauty: given in the unfolding mystery of God, most visibly in the person of Jesus.

You will recall, perhaps, the wonderful image used to describe the work of the great sculptor, Michelangelo. His work was described as that of releasing, from within the block of marble, the beauty of the statue that was already hidden in it, which he, in his genius, could already discern. The furious pace at which he could work was fired by his desire to set free the wonderful form already present in the stone.

Musical geniuses may well be similar: Mozart frantically writing down the score of his Requiem; Handel intensely completing his Messiah is an astonishingly short time. This is creativity in service of a heat, given good. This is beauty finding its particular expression in time and space, just as, for us, faith, too must find its voice.

To summarise this first point, then, is to state this: Faith finding a voice is always a work of fidelity. Faithfulness to what is given is a key and essential quality of the way in which the great mystery of faith finds fresh expression. And we have clear ways of understanding that faithfulness: it is a faithfulness to Jesus, the Word of God, as expressed in the Scriptures and the Tradition of the Church and safeguarded by its Teaching role, or Magisterium.

There is much contained within that last sentence which I cannot explore now. But its meaning is not a prison, even though some would wish to suggest it is. Fidelity to a gift – whether the love of one’s beloved or to the gift of how the Holy Spirit works within the Church – is not a prison, not an impeding of freedom. Rather it is a form, a shape, the result of a decision, through which freedom is tutored to explore ever more deeply that which it has accepted as lovely, true and beautiful. It is the harness of love which holds us to the task and guides us, often against our more wayward instincts, more deeply into the gift we have received.

From this flows a second and crucially important point, already implicit in what I have said so far: the voice has to be for today if it is to be a true service of the Word. Replaying the voice of yesterday will not be enough, even if a yearning for the familiar, or even a nostalgia for the past are frequently at play within us. In order to fashion a voice for today one thing is necessary: an attentive listening to the heartbeat of the age of which we are a part. In the language of the Church this is to say that dialogue is the essential partner of proclamation.

I heard a wonderful illustration of this point recently. It was a sermon given on the episode, in the Acts of the Apostles, in which Philip meets the Ethiopian eunuch and helps him to come to faith and be baptised. You may recall that the Ethiopian invites Philip into his chariot as he journeys home.

The crucial phrase, as emphasised in the sermon I heard, was this: ‘So he urged Philip to get in and sit by his side.’ (Acts 8.31) It was from that position, being side by side, that Philip is able to engage in conversation, offer insight in response to questions, leading the Ethiopian to baptism. To sit side by side is to be ready for dialogue.

So it should be with us, too. Here too there is much that can be said about the art of dialogue, the art of attentive listening. But I would like to make one point only. Those involved in dialogue take great care not to misunderstand their interlocutor. They take care not to distort or misrepresent the other with which they are engaged. They desire a true understanding and exchange, not an easy and superficial confrontation or argument. Indeed St Thomas Aquinas set as a standard the ability to express the others’ argument better than they can themselves.

In our world today this is a crucially important point in the work of enabling faith to find its voice. Our manner of talking together may not always be like this. There is a danger that we allow the pattern of much media communication to tutor our more personal manner of communication.

Yet much media communication is far from our normal way of talking together. After all, the media constantly deals in the exceptional and, of course, tends to sensationalise it, too. News and comment features are designed to catch our attention and to draw us into an often confrontational interpretation of a trend or particular event.

Our own personal communication, which is usually about the very ordinariness of life, is best shaped by the different qualities of dialogue: listening, understanding and shared empathy.

The media’s typical focus and methodology should not dominate our ways of communication. Indeed we do well to step back from the media output which we are constantly receiving and evaluate or question its underlying assumptions.

The principal point I want to make here is that the way of dialogue is the pathway by which faith best finds its voice. So, in our task, in our conversations, we have to be on the look out not so much for the points of opposition but for the points of possible agreement, not so much for controversy as for convergence, not so much for highlighting what is missing as seeking out the good that is to be found in the other, without ignoring or glossing over real differences (Cf ‘Meeting God in Friend and Stranger’, Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales). The pathway of dialogue is the pathway on which we are encouraged, as was made clear by Pope Benedict during his Visit to the UK in 2010.

In our Catholic tradition, there are three pathways down which faith finds a voice, three arenas or areas of dialogue with our world and our society. These are the pathways of truth, of goodness and of beauty. I would like to say a word about each one in turn – but in reverse order!

The pathway of beauty is, perhaps, the one which is most readily appealing to people today. In places and objects of beauty there remains an unobscured appeal, a quality that raises our minds, hearts and spirit above present circumstances, whatever they may be. Such beauty helps us to see ourselves within a wider perspective, loosening our preoccupation with ourselves and appreciating how our lives are but a part of a wider pattern, a wider response to the mystery of life itself. Often, but not always, that beauty has an explicit connection to the religious, to the account that faith gives of our endeavours and experiences.

There are many places which are recognised as ‘holy’ and people still flock to them: ‘Holy Island’, Durham Cathedral, or the tomb of St Cedd in Lastingham – to name a few near here.

Works of art also have a great eloquence. Some of the most successful exhibitions in London have put forward the beauty of our faith: Seeing Salvation, the Treasures of Heaven and, most remarkably, The Sacred Made Real, the exhibition of Spanish works of art. One of those pieces, a figure of the dead Christ, presented a new problem to the museum: visitors were kneeling in prayer beside it! They were gently asked to move on.

This, I suggest, highlights two points. First, we should be cautious about too easily identifying our age as one of ‘aggressive secularism’. Of course there are some voices of that tone and content, but there is also a widespread and deep sympathy and search for the transcendent, for the things of God which we should note, respect, reflect and to which we can respond.

Secondly, the beauty of our churches and homes, the beauty of our liturgy and behaviour, the beauty of our musical endeavour and the harmony we seek with others in our living together are all parts of the way in which we express our confidence that this is indeed God’s world, it was God who made it and it is ‘very good’. Finding such a voice is hard work, as hard as producing any masterpiece. But it is a work in which all of us can be involved and to which we can give much thought.

The second pathway, on which I wish to touch, is the pathway of goodness. This, too, is clear and practical, within the reach of each one of us.

Pope Benedict, in his Encyclical ‘Deus Caritas Est’, gave great emphasis to the importance of practical charity, rooted in and directed to the love of God, as that which gives credibility to the Gospel (cf ‘Deus Caritas Est’ para 31). The words of Gospel truth begin to ring true when they are accompanied by deeds of kindness and goodness. It is charity which gives them their cutting edge. This much we know.

St James made it clear in his Letter (James 2.18); axioms such as ‘actions speak louder than words’ embed this truth in everyday language, and saints have emphasised it too. Remember the words commonly attributed to St Francis: ‘Let us proclaim the Gospel always and when necessary use words.’

This is faith finding a voice on every street corner, in the kitchen and in the workplace, among friends and strangers, in every part of the broad pathway of life. This is the work of each individual, spontaneous and personal; it is the work of parish groups coming together for a specific task; it is the work of great organisations such as our own CAFOD reaching across the world in charity.

Far more goes on in this work than we realise so it is appropriate that, as a Church, we seek to serve this witness of charity a little more systematically. This we are doing through the development of ‘Caritas’, a pattern of support and networking which has recognition in so many countries and which help to develop the local work of charity and enable it to find a voice, a word of advocacy, which has a strong base in evidence and experience.

A good step in that direction is for every parish just to review and bring to light all the charity work which goes on and simply ask how it can be better supported and encouraged.

Faith finds a convincing voice through the work of practical goodness.

The third pathway, that of truth, is the most complex at the present time, for we live in an age in which truth has been largely relativised. ‘You have your truth and I have mine and you must not impose your truth on me – though I may well want you to accept mine!’

The complexity of this cultural norm with which we are living is felt everywhere: in conflicts between the generations, in debate about the ethical and social norms to be upheld by society – such as the nature of marriage – and in the fields of academic study. How are we to respond? How can the truth of faith find a voice in this context?

I would like to make three practical suggestions.

The first concerns the practice of prayer. Prayer, as the raising of the mind and heart to God, is the first way in which the truth of faith finds its voice. Christian prayer is an explicit statement about the existence of God, about the gift of the Incarnate Word in Jesus Christ, and about how we live our lives in God’s presence every moment, every day.

There is a great openness in much of society to the reality of prayer. It may not be fully understanding of all that is involved, it may be an unformed instinct, but there is an awareness of the reality which prayer touches. Think of the example of Fabrice Muamba, the young footballer who suffered heart failure on the pitch.

There was a huge appeal for prayer. Newspapers had headlines such as ‘God is in charge.’ The young man and his family have never ceased to speak about the importance of prayer alongside deep appreciation of the dedication and skill of the medical professionals.

In a recent interview he spoke of waking up to find his family around the bed saying psalms for his recovery. ‘They were praying so loud’, he laughed. ‘No one could sleep through that!’

Also, at a time when there is often controversy about the place of religious belief in the work place, his fiancé spoke so gratefully of ‘a young African cleaner in the hospital who would come into the room every day to pray silently in the corner.’ She gives us all good example not only of the importance of prayer, but also of the importance of respecting the circumstances and the needs of each particular situation. Prayer is not to be imposed.

In my experience, no one has ever rejected me when I have offered to include them in my prayers, particularly when they have told me of something burdening or troubling them. Sometimes people ask for our prayers. That is an important sign. We should be ready to offer, sensitively and even a little diffidently, to pray for others. To make such an offer is a simple, everyday way in which faith finds a voice in our lives and its truths are proclaimed. Its fruit is clear. Fabrice Muamba states it clearly. He said, and it was a newspaper headline: ‘If God is with me then who can be against me?’

A second way in which faith finds a voice in the proclamation of truth is in public debate. This could readily be a lecture in its own right, but I want to make one essential point.

Often public debate produces more heat than light. Tempers rise – and are provoked – and listening ends and the debate becomes a battle of wills not a meeting of minds. Of course it is not always so, but the temptation to concentrate on making one’s own point rather than seeking to understand and respond to the other is very real as I know too well.

In this context Pope Benedict has made a particular appeal for the part that silence and reflection has to play in communication. He said this: ‘Silence is an integral element of communication; in its absence, words rich in content cannot exist. In silence, we are better able to listen to and understand ourselves; ideas come to birth and acquire depth; we understand with greater clarity what it is we want to say and what we expect from others; and we choose how to express ourselves.

By remaining silent we allow the other person to speak, to express him or herself; and we avoid being tied simply to our own words and ideas without them being adequately tested. In this way, space is created for mutual listening, and deeper human relationships become possible. …When messages and information are plentiful, silence becomes essential if we are to distinguish what is important from what is insignificant or secondary.

Deeper reflection helps us to discover the links between events that at first sight seem unconnected, to make evaluations, to analyze messages; this makes it possible to share thoughtful and relevant opinions, giving rise to an authentic body of shared knowledge. For this to happen, it is necessary to develop an appropriate environment, a kind of ‘eco-system’ that maintains a just equilibrium between silence, words, images and sounds.’

In summary he said: “When word and silence become mutually exclusive, communication breaks down, either because it gives rise to confusion or because, on the contrary, it creates an atmosphere of coldness; when they complement one another, however, communication acquires value and meaning.”  (Message for World Communications Day, 20 May 2012).

In practice this can mean many things which you are well able to discern yourselves.

One suggestion from me: every radio and TV set has an ‘on/off’ switch. Perhaps we should use it more often and free ourselves from too much input, from the constant round of news and debate, so as to reflect a little more and then deepen the quality of our understanding and of the contribution we can make. Too much input and there is no time or space for reflection. A little more stillness, space and silence and then the ‘still, small voice’ of faith will find its power.

The third area in which faith can find a voice for truth, I suggest, is in the area of history, of the telling of a story, the giving an account of what has happened either today or many years ago. And here I would like to turn to one of your own favourite saints, St Bede, whose feast we celebrate next week.

His work in giving an account of our history is formed by one overriding conviction: that the work of the Holy Spirit continues in history. So the chronology which he presented differed from the one predominant at the time which was centred on the date of the foundation of the City of Rome. In contrast Bede placed the Birth of Christ as the centre of history, and therefore interpreted that history from the perspective of the Incarnation of the Lord.

This might suggest to us a way of giving an account of our own personal histories, the stories we so often want to share. To speak of our lives as being under the providence of God and of having key moments recognised as part of that providence, or as a moving away from that perspective, would be a remarkable way in which faith could find a voice in our everyday speech.

This is not so much a question of adopting a kind of pious phraseology, in which speech is interspersed with references to the good Lord, but rather a way of seeing our own history as the unfolding of the gift of life, given by God, and the journey to a deeper understanding of that gift and all it entails as we journey towards an eternal fulfilment.

An illustration of a ‘guiding principle’ at work in a narrative is seen each week in the Antiques Roadshow when person after person overrides the financial value of an antique with the value it has for the family to which it belongs. Here value and meaning are given a specific focus.

The story these people want to tell is the story of the richness of their family life and heritance, not the story of the commercial value of what they own. Things look quite different, and indeed carry different value, from the perspective that is taken on them.

We can take a further step, then,  and speak about the meaning of our life’s experience from the perspective of our faith in God, in our relationship with the Lord and in the perspective of the continual presence of the Holy Spirit prompting and guiding us, not only in the bigger decision of life but in many smaller moments, too.

This is not as strange as it might seem. In my experience, those who attain to old age often adopt this perspective. A fine example of it was seen in the film ‘Catholics-Women’, recently broadcast on the BBC.

There an older women reflected quite spontaneously on her whole life from the perspective of the faith which she has recently rediscovered. She spoke of sixty years of her life, years in which she had been professionally very successful, as ‘wasted years’ now that she viewed them again from the perspective of faith. It was a remarkable and moving testimony: faith finding an eloquent and compelling voice.

Commenting on the life and work of the Venerable Bede, Pope Benedict recently highlighted the ‘timely messages’ given by Bede for many of us in the Church today. The Pope pointed out that for scholars, the message of Bede is this: ‘to examine the marvels of the Word of God in order to present them in an attractive form to the faithful; and to explain the dogmatic truths, avoiding heretical complications and keeping to Catholic simplicity, with the attitude of the lowly and humble to whom God is pleased to reveal the mysteries of the Kingdom.’ (General Audience, 18 February 2009)

Bede’s message for us pastors is that we should give priority to preaching, with the Holy Father adding that ‘Bede recommends that they – the pastors – use the vernacular as he himself does.’

The Pope continues by recommending to those in a consecrated way of life that their pattern of prayer and community life, coupled with attending to the practical apostolate of evangelisation, as the way spelt out by the Venerable Bede.

Finally the Pope says that ‘The Holy Doctor (Bede)’ urged lay faithful to be diligent in religious instruction, to pray ceaselessly ‘reproducing in life what they celebrate in liturgy’ and offering all their actions as a spiritual sacrifice in union with Christ, giving special emphasis to the role of parents.

In conclusion, one last thought. Of all the aspects of the Eternal Word, which took flesh in Christ, one strikes me of particular immediacy for our world today. It is the word of hope. Perhaps, as we struggle to enable the faith in our lives to find a voice, whether in beauty, goodness or truth, and always down the pathway of sensitive dialogue, it is the word of hope that we might most strive to articulate.

Hope is the virtue by which we see all things in the perspective of the heavenly kingdom. Hope expresses that for which we strive, which is as yet not attained but which we know, on the promise made to us by the Lord, can indeed be attained and is indeed our true destiny.

When we articulate that hope, then present reality takes on its deepest meaning, its true perspective. And within that perspective we human beings can maintain our true dignity, our true poise no matter what we face.

It is with a true hope of heaven in our hearts that suffering is borne with dignity, that failure is faced, that betrayal is endured and that success is properly celebrated. Christian hope strengthens our resolve and deepens our charity for in its perspective we know that we are all truly brothers and sisters of one Father and sharing in a common destiny.

To live without such hope is to live with vital pieces of the jigsaw of life missing. And that is frustrating and annoying. We search for the missing pieces and know that until they are found we see the work as incomplete and are tempted to think of it as worthless. But when they do emerge from under the sofa and are clicked into place then the whole jigsaw becomes a thing of joy to behold. Our word of faithful hope can bring great joy to many.

One example of such faithful hope finding a voice is given to us in the Acts of the Apostles. Stephen is presenting to his Jewish brothers and sisters his great witness to Christ. He is proposing to them a new reading of their history, a reading now centred on the coming of Jesus as the promised one of God.

It all comes to a difficult climax at the apex of which we read: ‘But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at God’s right hand. ‘Look! I can see heaven thrown open,’ he said, ‘and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ The fruit of this hope is clear. Even as Stephen died he said, ‘Lord Jesus, receive my spirit’ and ‘Lord, do not hold this sin against them.’ Peace and forgiveness are the fruits of such hope!

Let us give thanks for every fleeting glimpse we are given of the glory of God and the goodness of the Lord. Let those moments form and deepen our faithful hope. And, in that light may we indeed enable faith to find a fresh and compelling voice in our society today.

End of text

Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia and Mr Bill Ozanne pictured together after their Investiture as Knights of the Pontifical Order of Pope St Gregory the Great.

The Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, invested the internationally known and respected Spiritual Leader and Chairman of Guru Nanak Nishkam Sewak Jatha, based in the Handsworth area of Birmingham, with one of the highest Papal Awards.

The Order of St Gregory is normally bestowed on Catholics but in rare cases it is also conferred on non-Catholics in recognition of meritorious service to the Catholic Church and the exceptional example they have set in their communities and country.

More than 120 Sikhs, from Birmingham, London, Leeds, and some who had flown from Kenya and India were present in St Chad’s Cathedral for this unique and ground-breaking event in inter-faith relations involving the Catholic Church and the Sikh faith.

Some of the Sikh community who attended the Mass and the Investiture pictured outside the Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica of St Chad, Birmingham.

Mr Bill Ozanne, who has worked in the area of inter-religious dialogue locally, nationally and internationally for many years as a member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales Committee for Other Faiths, has recently been appointed by Archbishop Longley as Chairman of the Archdiocese of Birmingham Commission for Interreligious Dialogue.

During the Rite of Investiture, which took place immediately after the homily, Bhai Sahib  Bhai, was escorted by Sewa Singh Mandla, and Mr Bill Ozanne by his two sponsors, Michael Hodgetts, KSG and Tony Flanagan KSG.

Canon Gerry Breen, Dean of St Chad’s Cathedral, read out the two Papal Briefs of “Benedict XVI Supreme Pontiff”, given at St Peter’s in Rome, signed and sealed by the Cardinal Secretary of State, Cardinal Bertone.

Archbishop Bernard Longley invested  each of the knights elect In the name of the Holy Father  with the insignia of a Knight of the Pontifical Order of St Gregory the Great, pinning the Cross to the left breast of each and presenting them with their framed Papal Brief. The Archbishop also presented Bhai Sahib-ji with the sword of the Pontifical Order of St Gregory the Great.

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured as he pins the Cross on Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia during the Rite of Investiture.

In his homily Archbishop Bernard Longley said: “This is a truly joyful day for it witnesses a moment of recognition and gratitude on the part of the Catholic Church for the dedication of two men of faith for whom our city of Birmingham is their home and the base for their work. This is also a unique and historical moment in the life of this Cathedral and in the experience of the Catholic Church in England and Wales and perhaps further afield.

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured during his homily at the Mass of Investiture in St Chad’s Cathedral.

“It is very fitting that Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia and Mr Bill Ozanne are receiving Papal Knighthoods from His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI on the same occasion and in the same ceremony of investiture. Over a friendship of many years they have discovered not only within each other, but also within the faith traditions that they represent, an openness to dialogue and a desire to deepen understanding and co-operation for the common good.

“They have both personally committed considerable time and energy to the goals of interfaith understanding and of common witness to shared values. But they have also encouraged and enabled the Sikh and Christian traditions to make progress along the pathway from mutual respect towards the deeper insights that friendship brings. They have prompted us to work more closely together in service of others.”

The Archbishop continued: “I believe that it is the first time that a Papal Honour has been bestowed in this way on a spiritual leader from within the Sikh community. It represents the Holy Father’s recognition of Bhai Sahib Bhai’s deeply held desire for fruitful and lasting relations between Sikhs and Catholics and opportunities to witness together.

“We recall Bhai Sahib Bhai’s presence in Assisi for the international meetings of faith leaders at the invitation of Blessed Pope John Paul II and of Pope Benedict – and I am sure that he will long remember being present with Mandla-ji in St Peter’s Square at the funeral of Blessed John Paul II during April 2005.”

Archbishop Bernard Longley stressed: “Nothing could have given greater pleasure to Mr Bill Ozanne than to be receiving this Papal Knighthood alongside Bhai Sahib Bhai, for this moment becomes symbolic of Bill’s own vision for interfaith dialogue and witnesses to his long commitment to this important work of the Church.”

He expressed his gratitude to Bill Ozanne for taking the Chair of the Archdiocese of Birmingham Commission for Interreligious Dialogue.

He said: “Bill Ozanne has constantly emphasised the abiding significance of the teaching of the Second Vatican Council in its Declaration Nostra Aetate. The insights of this declaration are as relevant to our situation today as when they were written fifty years ago. It is the foundation for our friendship and collaboration at every level with men and women of faith. We are blessed in this city to have an active and committed Faith Leaders Group and I am grateful that so many of its members are here with us today.”

Archbishop Bernard Longley concluded his homily: “The faith communities in this city are often among the first to recognise emerging social needs within our local communities. We want to develop effective partnerships among ourselves and with other agencies wherever appropriate to help meet these needs. May today’s celebration encourage us to continue along the pathway of this commitment not only for the good of our own faith communities but for the common good.”

At the sign of peace  Archbishop Longley warmly greeted the two new Papal Knights and members of the families, his two co-Presidents of the Birmingham Faith Leaders Group, the Right Reverend David Urquhart, Anglican Bishop of Birmingham, and Major Samuel Edgar, Divisional Commander, Salvation Army, West Midlands.

St Chad’s Cathedral looked at its magnificent best and the Cathedral Choir, under its Director of Music, Professor David Saint, added to the splendour of an historic and memorable occasion with a wonderful rendering of the Franz Schubert Mass in G major. The great Pugin masterpiece was filled with echoes of joyful sound.

After the final hymn, “Christ is made the sure foundation”, members of the Sikh community sang a hymn of praise accompanied by two musicians playing traditional musical instruments. It was a deeply moving experience and in complete contrast to the ritual and ceremony of the Mass and Investiture.

The two Sikh musicians pictured playing their traditional musical instruments in St Chad's Cathedral.

Mr Sewa Singh Mandla then spoke on behalf of the Sikh community. At the lectern with the lighted 2012 Pascal Candle burning brightly beside him, he concluded: “Our two faiths respect each other. We pray that the relationship between us will grow and flourish.”

Mr Sewa Singh Mandla speaking on behalf of the Sikh community at the end of the Mass and the Investiture.

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured after the Investiture Mass with left to right: Mrs Margaret Ozanne, Mr Sewa Singh Mandla, Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia, Mr Bill Ozanne, Bishop Philip Pargeter, Emeritus Auxiliary Bishop of Birmingham and Canon Gerry Breen, Dean of St Chad’s Cathedral.

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured after the Investiture with Mr Sewa Singh Mandla (left) and Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia.

Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia pictured with me after his Investiture as a Knight of the Pontifical Order of Pope St Gregory the Great.

MASS AND INVESTITURE – TEXT OF HOMILY

The Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica of St Chad, Birmingham,

Sunday, 22 April 2012

Homily given by the Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham

Have a care for justice, act with integrity…I will make them joyful in my house of prayer

 This is a truly joyful day for it witnesses a moment of recognition and gratitude on the part of the Catholic Church for the dedication of two men of faith for whom our city of Birmingham is their home and the base for their work. It is also a unique and historical moment in the life of this Cathedral and in the experience of the Catholic Church in England and Wales and perhaps further afield.

It is very fitting that Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia and Mr Bill Ozanne have expressed themselves delighted to be receiving Papal Knighthoods from His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI on the same occasion and in the same ceremony of investiture.

Over a friendship of many years they have discovered not only within each other, but also within the faith traditions that they represent, an openness to dialogue and a desire to deepen understanding and co-operation for the common good.

They have both personally committed considerable time and energy to the goals of interfaith understanding and of common witness to shared values. But they have also encouraged and enabled the Sikh and Christian traditions to which they belong to make progress along the pathway from mutual respect towards the deeper insights that friendship brings. They have prompted us to work more closely together in service of others.

Those words of the Prophet Isaiah which we heard in today’s first scripture reading find their echo in the beliefs that underlie the shared commitment of Bhai Sahib Bhai Dr Mohinder Singh Ahluwalia and Mr Bill Ozarme.

Have a care for justice, act with integrity. Justice and integrity have deep spiritual roots and they are fruits that are highly prized within both our traditions of faith. They are valued not only for the impact that they have within our faith communities or on the world around us but above all for their intrinsic good as part of the created world which we cherish and for which we give thanks in this ceremony and in the Eucharist.

I have said that today’s celebration is unique for I believe that it is the first time that a Papal Honour has been bestowed in this way on a spiritual leader from within the Sikh community. It represents the Holy Father’s recognition of Bhai Sahib Bhai’s deeply held desire for fruitful and lasting relations between Sikhs and Catholics wherever they live and have opportunities to witness together.

That desire has borne its own fruit especially here in Birmingham but it has been expressed on other occasions and in other places. We recall Bhai Sahib Bhai’s presence on the papal train and in Assisi for the international meetings of faith leaders at the invitation of Blessed Pope John Paul II and of Pope Benedict – and I am sure that he will long remember being present with Mandla-ji in St Peter’s Square at the funeral of Blessed John Paul II during April 2005.

Nothing could have given greater pleasure to Mr Bill Ozanne than to be receiving this Papal Knighthood alongside Bhai Sahib Bhai, for this moment becomes symbolic of Bill’s own vision for interfaith dialogue and witnesses to his long commitment to this important work of the Church.

I am grateful to you, Bill, for recently agreeing to become the Chairman of our diocesan Commission for Interreligious Dialogue and I am pleased that other members of the commission are also here today.

Bill has worked in this area of dialogue for many years at national level as a member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference Committee for Other Faiths. He has constantly emphasised the abiding significance of the teaching of the Second Vatican Council in its Declaration Nostra Aetate. The insights of this declaration are as relevant to our situation today as when they were written fifty years ago. Pope Paul VI then wrote:

In our time, when day by day mankind is being drawn closer together, and the ties between different peoples are becoming stronger, the Church examines more closely her relationship to non-Christian religions. In her task of promoting unity and love among men, indeed among nations, she considers above all in this declaration what men have in common and what draws them to fellowship.

The Catholic Church rejects nothing that is true and holy in these religions. She regards with sincere reverence those ways of conduct and of life, those precepts and teachings which, though differing in many aspects from the ones she holds and sets forth, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that Truth which enlightens all men. Indeed she proclaims, and ever must proclaim Christ “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14 :6), in whom men may find the fullness of religious life, in whom God has reconciled all things to Himself.

The Church, therefore, exhorts her sons, that through dialogue and collaboration with the followers of other religions, carried out with prudence and love and in witness to the Christian faith and life, they recognize, preserve and promote the good things, spiritual and moral, as well as the socio-cultural values found among these men.

That public declaration of the Catholic Church’s commitment to interreligious dialogue is the foundation for our friendship and collaboration at every level with men and women of faith. We are blessed in this city to have an active and committed Faith Leaders Group and I am grateful that so many of its members are here with us today.

The faith communities in this city are often among the first to recognise emerging social needs within our local communities. We want to develop effective partnerships among ourselves and with other agencies wherever appropriate to help meet these needs. May today’s celebration encourage us to continue along the pathway of this commitment not only for the good of our own faith communities but for the common good.

May Bhai Sahib Bhai and Bill Ozamie be blessed for many years to come as they share and live out this vision to the glory of God.

End of text

The Archbishop of Westminster said: “We have now less than 100 days to go before the London 2012 Olympics are upon us. Preparations are being made in many parts of London and elsewhere. Hopes and expectations are high, not least for some Team GB cycling medals.

“During 2004 I was so pleased to meet Tommy Godwin, a Great Britain double Olympic bronze cycling medallist at the 1948 London Olympic Games. At the time I was involved in 210-mile charity cycle ride in the Archdiocese of Birmingham.

“Tommy Godwin kindly gave me good advice when it comes to cycling, he said: Pedal don’t push!”

Archbishop Vincent Nichols added: “This cycling stamp sheet from the Isle of Man, inscribed to me by Tommy Godwin, marks both London Olympic Games and is rather special!”

Archbishop Vincent Nichols pictured in Rome holding the Isle of Man, London 2012 Olympic special first day cover.

The five postal works on board the Royal Mail Ship Titanic, which left Southampton on her maiden voyage to New York on 10 April 1912, lost their lives – two were British and the other three were US citizens. The Times newspaper recorded that the ship was carrying 3,814 sacks of mail.

In London one hundred years later on Monday 16 April 2012, following the Opening Ceremony of the China Stamp Exhibition, hosted by the State Post Bureau of the People’s Republic of China, organised by the All-China Philatelic Federation, China National Post and Postage Stamp Museum, and the Royal Philatelic Society London, distinguished representatives from each of these esteemed organisations kindly agree to pose for pictures.

The three-day exhibition, 16-18 April 2012, was supported by the General Administration of Press and Publications of the People’s Republic of China. The spectacular, and extremely rare and valuable Chinese stamps on show were displayed in almost fifty frames (12 album sheets per frame) in the Society’s large meeting room.

My exclusive pictures show (left to right) Lv Xinghua, Deputy Director China Post Literature & History Centre, Beijing, Li Jie, Director of Exhibition Division, All-China Philatelic Federation, and Danny Wong FRPSL, the Royal Philatelic Society London Representative in China, holding the magnificent special large decorative sheet, FDC and Presentation Pack that I presented to them on behalf of the Isle of Man Post office.

The distinguished guests from China pictured holding the Isle of Man RMS Titanic large decorative sheet and first day cover, in London on Monday 16 April 2012..

The pictures were taken by me just outside the entrance to the Royal Philatelic Society London, at 41 Devonshire Place, situated not far from Baker Street underground station.

Mr Danny Wong FRPSL explained that people in China knew about the story of the White Star Line RMS Titanic that sank in the Atlantic Ocean during her maiden voyage 100 years ago, because it is included in text books.

Mr David Beech FRPSL, Head of the Philatelic Collections at the British Library, was also pleased to pose for pictures holding the attractive first day cover released on 2 April 2012, which he autographed for Isle of Man Stamps & Coins to frame.

David Beech FRPSL pictured holding the Isle of Man special RMS Titanic first day cover.

David Beech FRPSL, Past President of the Royal Philatelic Society London, said: “Postage stamps are an excellent way of showing and recording history of which this RMS Titanic commemorative issue by the Isle of Man Post Office is an excellent example.”

Mr Beech added: “The dramatic story of the sinking of the Titanic is known in China and it was entirely appropriate that our Chinese friends were presented with these stamps.”

The autographed FDC.

The Archbishop of Birmingham was the principal celebrant and preacher at this special mass, promoted and organised by the Catholic Men’s Society which has taken place each year since 1919.

The Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, pictured in St Chad's Cathedral, Easter 2012.

In a challenging homily on Easter Monday, 9 April 2012, Archbishop Longley stated: “Marriage and family life go side by side in the Christian tradition. As you will know the Government is determined to change the meaning of marriage so that it is no longer the life-long, exclusive union between a man and a woman open to the gift of children.”

The Archbishop of Birmingham stressed: “Christian marriage respects and celebrates the difference between male and female as God-given, and sees a true equality in the way they complement each other.  We have a right to express this view forcefully in the public debate and we need to emphasise that we are not seeking to discriminate against anybody.”

Earlier in his homily, Archbishop Longley said: “Over the years the Men’s Mass has developed into a positive opportunity for succeeding generations of Catholic sons, fathers and grandfathers to be here at St Chad’s, and to witness to their faith in the risen Christ to one another. It is an important way of handing on our faith from one generation to the next, and the faith of the young never fails to strengthen and encourage the faith of their elders.”

The Archbishop added: “Faith in Christ is not disappearing – as this Mass clearly demonstrates – but we need to discover new ways of deepening and supporting the faith of our brothers and sisters.”

Archbishop Longley told the congregation: “As family members you are witnessing your faith to one another. As fathers you are taking up the responsibility to be the first teachers of your sons in the ways of faith. The family is central to the life of the Church and it is the fundamental building-block of our society.

“The family’s well-being and its ability to provide a stable foundation for life are also central to the well-being of the society in which we live. It has an influence on the quality of the contribution that we can make in our professional lives or in civic life. Family life also has its impact on our education and resources need to be dedicated in schools to understanding and dealing with the issues that arise from family life.”

Archbishop Bernard Longley concluded: “We are aware that some people today would prefer to hide our Christian faith as a private activity, to limit its impact and to stop it from playing any part in public affairs or in any of the debates about the future of our society or about how we want to see it develop. But that ignores something that is central to Christianity.

“We have to live our faith in the risen Christ in the sight of others and we are called to evangelise, to allow faith in Christ to change others. So the values and beliefs that influence the way we live at home also guide the way we work and the way we vote.”

Easter Vigil Ceremony outside St Chad's Cathedral, Birmingham.

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured lighting the Paschal Candle 2012.

The Vigil was followed by the procession from the crypt door outside towards the altar. The great Easter “Exultet” was sung in English by Mgr Mark Crisp, Rector of St Mary’s College Oscott. The staff and students from the diocesan seminary were a most welcome addition to the Easter Triduum this year.  The Triduum is one service spread over Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Saturday.

The procession into St Chad's Cathedral.

After the Liturgy of the Word and the Gloria, Archbishop Bernard Longley solemnly intoned the great Easter Alleluia.   His beautiful tenor voice filled the Cathedral with the joyful sound of rejoicing; in contrast to the starkness of the previous six-weeks of Lent.

Students from St Mary's College, Oscott, the diocesan seminary, pictured during the Easter Vigil.

After the Litany of the Saints had been sung there followed the Celebration of Reception during which the Archbishop received and warmly welcomed three people (Peter Adcock, Angela Ashurst and Gary Turley-Finch) into full communion with the Catholic Church.

Archbishop Longley then processed to the Baptismal Font where he blessed the water and the three candidates for Baptism – Debbie Kim, Grace Morgan and Sabrina Drummond – made their baptismal promises. Their sponsors and members of the congregation joined in with the renewal of their own baptismal promises, a welcome to the new trio and an affirmation of their faith.

The newly baptised pictured holding candles from left to right: Debbie Kim, Grace Morgan and Sabrina Drummond.

The three candidates made their Profession of Faith and the Archbishop of Birmingham baptised them – pouring a liberal amount of water over the head of each. It was a short, simple but very beautiful ceremony that fully engaged every individual present.

Archbishop Longley then returned to the sanctuary where, standing at the foot of the steps, he administered the Sacrament of Confirmation to the three people he had received, the three he had baptised, and seven others.

During his homily Archbishop Bernard Longley emphasised: “In our present life we have a foretaste of our risen life in Christ and we are called to live it day by day by responding to God’s grace at work within us, through the scriptures, in the sacraments, through the prayers of faith and in our good works.

The Paschal Candle 2012 pictured during the Easter Vigil at St Chad's Cathedral.

“We experience many passing moments of re-awakening, when glimpses of the goodness  and glory of God’s Kingdom break through the ordinary events of each day – when we catch a reflection of God’s Kingdom in the words and gestures of faith-filled people.”

Archbishop Longley continued: “One of those faith-filled people whose influence we continue to feel today is Blessed John Henry Newman. His beautiful poem The Dream of Gerontius depicts the re-awakening of a sinful yet faithful soul at the point of experiencing the risen life of Christ. Gerontius reflects:

I went to sleep; and now I am refreshed,

A strange refreshment: for I feel in me

An inexpressive lightness, and a sense

Of freedom, as if I were at length myself,

And ne’er had been before.

Archbishop Bernard Longley concluded his thoughtful homily: “Cardinal Newman helps us to see that when we rise to new life in Christ, through our baptism  into his death and resurrection, we only then begin to find our real identity and our true path ahead.

“Every Easter re-orients our pathway and casts its new light upon our footsteps. Then, re-awakening and adjusting our eyes to the brilliance of his light, we set our sights once again on him, the risen Lord.”

The Archbishop of Birmingham pictured with the concelebrants during the Easter Vigil Mass.

The Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham, welcomed the pilgrims, who this year were joined by the staff and students from St Mary’s College Oscott, the diocesan seminary, gathered at St Michael’s Catholic Church, Moor Street, near the famous Birmingham Bull Ring Shopping Centre.

Archbishop Bernard Longley read from the Gospel of St Mark and prayed that the Good News of Jesus might be proclaimed to the ends of the earth. The  Archbishop and the Right Reverend David Urquhart, the Anglican Bishop of Birmingham, led the Lord’s Prayer before the Oscott Schola sang: “Man of sorrows, wrapt in grief.”

The banks and building societies were closed but it was business as usual for the retail traders and the streets were crowded with people in the heart of Birmingham, a multi-cultural, multi-faith city, on this Good Friday morning, 2012.

The Archbishop of Birmingham and the Bishop of Birmingham walked side-by-side with the Deans of the Catholic and Anglican Cathedrals a pace or two behind them. The pilgrims sang traditional hymns as the Walk of Witness made its way slowly along High Street and then into New Street.

The Good Friday Walk of Witness pictured in New Street, Birmingham.

A number of people joined the procession along the way – some undoubtedly drawn by the large wooden cross carried in high honour at the head of it and others perhaps just from curiosity.

Archbishop Bernard Longley and Bishop David Urquhart holding flowers given to them by two members of staff at Specsavers in New Street, Birmingham.

People joined the Walk of Witness as it made its way slowly along New Street, Birmingham.

The Walk of Witness paused by the statue of Queen Victoria situated in front of Birmingham Council House, where it was joined by the Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Councillor Anita Ward, who read from the Gospel of St Mark.

Bishop David Urquhart, The Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Councillor Anita Ward, and Archbishop Bernard Longley, pictured in Victoria Square, Birmingham.

Bishop David Urquhart led prayers for the citizens and City of Birmingham. The Oscott Schola sang “Glory be to Jesus” before the Walk of Witness continued along Colmore Row to St Philip’s Anglican Cathedral. Here, the Dean, the Very Reverend Catherine Ogle, read from the Gospel of St Mark and Bishop David Urquhart led prayers for peace in the world.

The Good Friday Walk of Witness pictured in Colmore Row, Birmingham, with the Town Hall in the background.

The Good Friday Walk of Witness pictured leaving St Philip's Anglican Cathedral.

The Walk of Witness then continued along Colmore Row and Snow Hill to St Chad’s Cathedral, where Archbishop Bernard Longley and Bishop David  Urquhart, brothers in Christ, jointly led the Stations of the Cross, with readings by members of Oscott College.

St Chad’s Cathedral was full well before the Fourteenth Station, the last – Jesus is laid in the Sepulchre – and the final deeply poignant response prayed by all each time before the short Gospel reading, again from St Mark: “We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you – because by your holy Cross you have redeemed the world.”

Jesus Christ has risen from the dead as He said, alleluia

LUMEN CHRISTI – THE LIGHT OF CHRIST
The Paschal Candle pictured during the East Vigil on Holy Saturday, 7 April 2012, at the Metropolitan Cathedral and Basilica of St Chad, Birmingham.

In previous years the procession had made its way, delightfully and haphazardly, the short distance from the crypt, outside and along the side and front of the Metropolitan Cathedral of St Chad, Birmingham.

The particularly unseasonal spring weather also caused the cancellation, for the first time in many years, of the procession from Cathedral House by the Metropolitan Chapter, the auxiliary bishops and the Archbishop of Birmingham, the Most Reverend Bernard Longley. This procession escorted by the Papal Knights, had been scheduled to go outside and in through the West Door of this magnificent Pugin gem, situated on the edge of the famous Birmingham Jewellery Quarter.

Spy Wednesday, as it was once known, is the one occasion in the year when all the priests from across the 224 parishes and many varied chaplaincies gather  together and are the central figures, filling much of the central part of their magnificent cathedral, with the deacons, religious and lay faithful there just in a supporting role.

Archbishop Bernard Longley presided in the warmth and beauty of St Chad’s. He asked the priests if they were ready to renew the vows they made at their ordination. They responded with a great “I am”. The word of each was the resolution of all. It was a poignant and powerful moment.  It always is, from year to year.

In the course of the celebration Archbishop Bernard Longley blessed the oil used for catechumens, for the sick and for those being confirmed.

During his  homily the Archbishop said: “Of all the wonderful ceremonies of this Holy Week, when we participate in the sacred drama of the Lord’s passion and resurrection, the Chrism Mass deserves to stand out for its unique focus on the Priesthood of Jesus Christ and on the way that he has chosen to make his priesthood available to the people of our own time and place.”

Archbishop Bernard Longley pictured with his priests during his homily at the Chrism Mass.

Archbishop Longley emphasised that priests and deacons, religious and lay-faithful are all united in the priesthood of Christ. He said: “That is why we must work ever more closely together to further the Church’s mission in our diocese and to face the demands of evangelisation as one body, clergy, religious and lay-faithful seeking a common vision for the future shape of that mission.

“Our common sharing in the priesthood of Christ offers a sure foundation for the fresh collaboration for which I have called in the recent Pastoral Letter (read on the Fifth Sunday of Lent 25 March).”

The Archbishop stressed: “At the heart of this fruitful co-operation is our fidelity as priests to our sacramental sharing in the priesthood of Christ.  Being together today we renew the promises of our priestly ordination, but we also remember that this is not the only reason or the most important reason for our coming together in this concelebration. Our first purpose is to be at one, bishop and priests drawn together to bless and consecrate the holy oils.

The Oils are carried in procession to be Blessed by the Archbishop of Birmingham.

The Archbishop of Birmingham pictured during the Blessing of the Oils.

Archbishop Bernard Longley concluded: “The Church calls us together on this one day of the year to exercise the priesthood of Christ in a moment of common witness for the good of the whole diocese as well as for the individual communities we serve.”

H E Nigel Baker, British Ambassador to the Holy See, who masterminded the successful Colloquium, held at the Venerable English College, Rome, on Friday 30 March 2012.

The all-day event marked, as well as celebrated the 30th anniversary of the upgrade of diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and the Holy See at Ambassadorial Level; and the 30th Anniversary of the historic six-day Pastoral Visit by Blessed John Paul II to Great Britain, 30 May to 2 June 1982, during which the Polish Pope visited England, Scotland and Wales at the height of the Falkland conflict in the South Atlantic.

The Right Reverend Edwin Regan, Bishop of Wrexham and the Most Reverend Mario Conti, Archbishop of Glasgow, pictured in the garden of the Venerable English College during the Colloquium.

During the first session: “1982, The First Papal Visit and its Impact”, Archbishop Mario Conti, Archbishop of  Glasgow, Bishop Edwin Regan, Bishop of Wrexham and Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, gave an incisive overview. The Moderator, Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, also added his thoughts.

His Eminence Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh and the Most Reverend Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, pictured during the Colloquium organised by the British Embassy to the Holy See.

On 1 April 1982, a few weeks before Blessed Pope John Paul II arrived in Great Britain, Sir Mark Heath had presented his Credentials to the Holy Father as the First British Ambassador to the Holy See. This almost un-noticed event ushered in the start of a new era in the relationship between the Crown and the Holy See going back many centuries. It was in 1479 that King Edward IV appointed Sir John Shirwood as his Ambassador to the Pope – England’s first resident Ambassador overseas.

Ambassador Nigel Baker, who took up his appointment in September 2011 emphasised during his short, and thought-provoking introduction to the programme, that: “We look backwards to understand today and our tomorrows.” The Ambassador announced that the proceedings of the Colloquium would be published in a special publication.

The historic and tremendously successful four-day, State Visit of Pope Benedict XVI to the United Kingdom – Edinburgh, Glasgow, London and Birmingham, 16 to 19 September 2010, marked a new high-point in the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Holy See.

The highlights of the visit included the meeting with The Queen at the Palace of Holyrood House in Edinburgh, the Address given by Pope Benedict to the leaders of civil society in Britain in Westminster Hall, in the Palace of Westminster and the beatification of Blessed John Henry Newman in Cofton Park on the outskirts of Birmingham.

Ambassador Baker said that this State Visit by Pope Benedict was an important step in the strengthening of the strong bilateral relationship which the UK and the Holy See enjoy today.

He particularly drew the attention of the distinguished speakers, guests and members of the media, who packed the Garden Room at the English College, to the wide-ranging areas of common interest between the British Government and the Holy See, contained in the joint communique issued at the end of the high-powered British Government Ministerial Delegation’s visit to the Holy See on 14-15 February this year.

The notable speakers at the session, “Vatican II, 1982 and Now: The Ecumenical Relationship”, were  Bishop Christopher Hill the Anglican Bishop of Guildford, and Mgr Mark Langham of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity. The Moderator was Canon David Richardson, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See.

The speakers during the afternoon session on the subject,  “The Diplomatic and Political Relationship”, were Professor Norman Tanner, SJ – “The Long View”, and Mr Mark Pellew, British Ambassador to the Holy See 1998-2002 – “The 20^th Century”. The outstanding address by Mr Pellew included new information and personal recollections.

H E Nigel Baker, British Ambassador to the Holy See pictured with (left to right) the Right Reverend Christopher Hill, Anglican Bishop of Guildford, Canon David Richardson, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s Representative to the Holy See, and Mgr Mark Langham, of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity.

Mr Mark Pellew, British Ambassador to the Holy See 1998-2002, pictured during the Colloquium.

The speakers during the fourth and final session, “From Consalvi to Newman: the 19^th Century”, were Professor Judith Champ from St Mary’s College Oscott (the seminary in the Archdiocese of Birmingham) and Professor Eamon Duffy of Cambridge University.  Mgr Canon Charles Burns was the Moderator.

Mgr Canon Charles Burns and Professor Eamon Duffy pictured during the Colloquium.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor was the Celebrant at Vespers held in the College Chapel, and Bishop Christopher Hill, the Anglican Bishop of Guildford, preached the sermon. The occasion concluded with a most convivial Celebratory Dinner in the College refectory at which Mgr Nicholas Hudson, Rector of the Venerable English College, welcomed a number of the distinguished guests by name including the American Ambassador to the Holy See, H E Dr Miguel Diaz, and Lady Nicholas Windsor.

His Eminence Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, pictured during the Colloquium.

During his speech H E Nigel Baker, the dynamic British Ambassador to the Holy See said: “The British Embassy to the Holy See most definitely punches above its weight.” He and his small team can be justifiably proud of this most worthwhile Colloquium.

Archbishop Vincent Nichols spoke about the success of the State Visit by Pope Benedict XVI during September 2011. He mentioned the difficulties during the early planning stages but emphasised the outstanding success of the Visit.

Asked for his thoughts about the Colloquium, Archbishop Vincent Nichols said: “This was an excellent event and I am grateful to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office for its support of this initiative.  It showed British diplomacy at its best.”

The President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales added: “I believe that relations between the Holy See and the British Government are very positive.  The recent visit to the Holy See of Her Majesty’s Government’s Delegation was a great success and demonstrated substantial areas of common interest in the service of the common good.”

At no time during the Colloquium did Bishop Christopher Hill, the Anglican Bishop of Guildford, who has contributed so much to Anglican Roman Catholic relations since 1982, minimise the very serious new obstacles that Provinces of the world-wide Anglican Communion, including the Church of England, had put in the pathway to full Unity with the Church of Rome. Mgr Mark Langham, of the Pontifical Council for the Promotion of Christian Unity, also spoke with equal frankness.

One of the most striking characteristics about this Colloquium was the refreshing honesty and candour in which everyone spoke or asked questions. This would not have happened without the trust, confidence and friendships that have been carefully built-up and nurtured during the past thirty years!