The seventh weekly audio update from the desk of the Papal Visit Co-ordinator, Mgr Andrew Summersgill, looks at the new Papal Visit logo, and the event for schools during the Papal Visit.
You can listen to the audio by clicking on the MP3 player below:
So what’s new this week, Father? Can you tell us a bit about the Papal Visit logo that was launched recently?
Mgr Andrew Summersgill: Certainly, we launched the logo on the booklet which has gone out which gives the background to the Papal Visit, and which I talked a little bit about last week. The logo takes the motto for the Visit which is ‘Heart speaks unto heart’. That was the motto that Cardinal Newman chose as his own motto when he became a Cardinal, and it’s taken from the writings of St Francis de Sales who was a French bishop and a great spiritual writer with whom Cardinal Newman was very familiar. And in fact Cardinal Newman placed a painting of St Francis over the altar in his chapel in the Birmingham Oratory. The logo has been designed by Brian Clarke who is an artist particularly in stained glass, and a lot of Brian’s works are to be found all over the world. The logo is basically a candle which is surrounded by blue, by the phrase ‘Heart speaks unto heart’, and simply then the words ‘The Visit of Pope Benedict XVI, United Kingdom 2010’. And in choosing that as a logo I think that the bishops were hoping that the heart of the people of this country would be open to the heart of Pope Benedict, and that we would be able to listen to him, to see him, and to celebrate with him during the time that he is here.
When the Holy Father visits there’s going to be a gathering with schools, could you tell us a bit about that?
Mgr AS: Yes, we are planning a gathering with schools to take place on the Friday morning of the Visit. And the Catholic Education Service, both in England and Wales and in Scotland, is now in touch with schools authorities in the dioceses to seek representatives from the dioceses to come to be with Pope Benedict. There are about 800,000 young people in Catholic schools throughout the country. Now clearly they can’t all be in the one place. So somewhere in the region of about 3,000 young people will be invited to come along to represent their schools and their fellow pupils and to celebrate education, and particularly Catholic education, with Pope Benedict when he is here.
You can download the The Pope in the UK Booklet here (PDF)
