Scottish Catholic Observer

Both Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, and Archbishop Mario Conti of Glasgow have said that that Thursday was a triumph.

“Everyone has been saying that Scotland was a great start to the visit of His Holiness,” Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh (above left), has told the Scottish Catholic Observer. “It was both dignified and homely.”

Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Edinburgh on September 16 and was recieved by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II at Holyroodhouse Palace in the capital before processing through the streets of Scotland’s capital in the Popemobile in front of a crowd of over 120,000, wearing the special papal visit St Ninian’s Day tartan and following the joyful St Ninina’s Day parade.

Later in the day the Holy Father celebrated Mass in Glasgow at Bellahouston Park, with a congregation of 70,0000, in the late afternoon sunshine. Archbishop Conti (above right) welcomed Pope Benedict to the Mass, and to Glasgow.

“I felt so privileged to be the one who welcomed the Pope on behalf of the Church to Glasgow, to Scotland and to the UK,” the archbishop said. “It was a golden day in every sense… the Holy Father at the centre in his beautiful golden mitre and cloth-of-gold vestments; the gold coloured umbrellas which stretched out through the park marking the spots where priests took communion to people far and near, and that amazing golden glow which settled over the scene as the Mass drew to its close and the sun set in the west at the end of a momentous day.”

The cardinal and archbishop’s letter of thanks:

MESSAGE OF GRATITUDE TO THE PEOPLE OF SCOTLAND

On behalf of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, we wish to express our heartfelt gratitude to all who made the visit of our Holy Father Pope Benedict XVI to our country such a happy and memorable day. Months of preparation and hard work involved countless agencies and thousands of individuals. To each and every one of you our sincere thanks are due for the contribution you made to the resounding success of the day.

In a special way we wish to express our gratitude to Her Majesty the Queen who received the Holy Father so graciously as soon as he arrived in Scotland. We wish also to put on record our deep appreciation of the support of the UK Government, the Scottish Government, the City of Edinburgh Council and Glasgow City Council for their warm support and co-operation in the planning and delivery of a “day of days” which allowed 200,000 people to see the Holy Father in person during his day in Scotland.

Special thanks are also due to the police, fire and ambulance services, the NHS, the travel companies, Strathclyde Passenger Transport, Scotrail and Stagecoach, who co-ordinated the travel plan, as well as DF Concerts our event managers in Bellahouston Park.

We wish to acknowledge too, the very positive coverage given to the Holy Father’s time in Scotland by the broadcast and print media. Their expertise and commitment in relaying the Pope’s message to the people of Scotland was greatly appreciated.

To all the priests, deacons, religious and lay people who helped plan and support the visit, to parish pilgrim leaders who worked so hard to bring pilgrims from every corner of our land to Edinburgh and Glasgow and guide them safely home; to the teachers who planned lessons and accompanied pupils on the big day; to those who took part in the pre and post-event schedule in Glasgow or the St Ninian’s Day Parade in Edinburgh; to those who volunteered to work on the day of the visit as helpers and stewards either in Edinburgh or Glasgow and to all those who followed the events either in person or via radio, television or the internet, we wish to express our thanks and appreciation. In a special way we wish to thank the members of other churches and faith communities who joined us in welcoming the Holy Father to Scotland.

The planning, preparation and forethought which went into each step on this Apostolic journey were quite immense and it is thanks to the contributions of so many that the day was such a resounding success. The success of the visit is a success of which all Scotland can be proud. Scotland enjoyed a day in the sun last Thursday, we showed a spectacularly welcoming face to the Pope and the world and reminded all those watching that the Catholic faith in Scotland lives and flourishes even in these often faithless times.

To all of the people of our beloved Scotland, who made the successor of Peter an honorary Scot for the day, we say, “Thank you from the bottom of our heart.”

+Keith Patrick Cardinal O’Brien, Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland.

+Mario Joseph Conti, Archbishop of Glasgow, Vice President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland.