Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Edinburgh (Agenzia Fides) – Encouraging the United Kingdom, in its effort to become a modern and multicultural society, to “always maintain its respect for those traditional values and cultural expressions that more aggressive forms of secularism no longer value or even tolerate” and that they “let it not obscure the Christian foundation that underpins its freedoms,” the Holy Father Benedict XVI concluded his first address given in the United Kingdom on Thursday, September 16. In the Royal Palace of Holyroodhouse, a welcoming ceremony was held in which the Pope greeted Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the civil and religious authorities. There, he gave an address in which he highlighted the “deep Christian roots that are still present in every layer of British life.” Among monarchs of England and Scotland there have been Christians from very early times, including extraordinary Saints. Many exercised their sovereign duty in the light of the Gospel and as a result, “the Christian message has been an integral part of the language, thought and culture of the peoples of these islands for more than a thousand years.”
Over the course of history, there are many examples of this “force for good”: Britain intervened directly to stop the international slave trade, women like Florence Nightingale served the poor and the sick, John Henry Newman “was one of many British Christians of his age whose goodness, eloquence and action were a credit to their countrymen and women.” In recent times, “Britain and her leaders stood against a Nazi tyranny that wished to eradicate God from society and denied our common humanity to many, especially the Jews.” The Pope also recalled the essential role in the post-war effort and in negotiations in Northern Ireland. In closing, he made an appeal to the mass media, saying: “the British media have a graver responsibility than most and a greater opportunity to promote the peace of nations, the integral development of peoples and the spread of authentic human rights.”
In the afternoon, the Holy Father presided the Mass in Bellahouston Park in Glasgow, on the liturgical feast of Saint Ninian of Galloway, a missionary Bishop who evangelized the Celtic people, known as the Apostle of Scotland. The Pope said in his homily: “In the footsteps of the disciples whom our Lord sent forth before him, Ninian was one of the very first Catholic missionaries to bring his fellow Britons the good news of Jesus Christ. His mission church in Galloway became a centre for the first evangelization of this country. That work was later taken up by Saint Mungo, Glasgow’s own patron, and by other saints, the greatest of whom must include Saint Columba and Saint Margaret. Inspired by them, many men and women have laboured over many centuries to hand down the faith to you. Strive to be worthy of this great tradition!”
The Pope encouraged everyone to continue praying and working with the other Christian denominations “in building a brighter future for Scotland based upon our common Christian heritage.” He later added: “The preaching of the Gospel has always been accompanied by concern for the word: the inspired word of God and the culture in which that word takes root and flourishes...The evangelization of culture is all the more important in our times, when a 'dictatorship of relativism' threatens to obscure the unchanging truth about man’s nature, his destiny and his ultimate good. There are some who now seek to exclude religious belief from public discourse, to privatize it or even to paint it as a threat to equality and liberty. Yet religion is in fact a guarantee of authentic liberty and respect, leading us to look upon every person as a brother or sister.” (SL) (Agenzia Fides 17/09/2010)
