Archbishop Vincent Nichols today launched “The Pope in the UK” booklet which will go out to parishes across England, Wales and Scotland.
The booklet aims to answer some simple questions about the visit itself, the call of faith and its unfolding in daily life and the role of the Catholic Church. It is made up of 10 questions, ranging from why the Pope is meeting the Queen to the contribution of the Catholic Church to British society and why the Pope will be beatifying cardinal Newman.
Archbishop Vincent Nichols said:
“We wanted to try to answer the questions of those curious about the visit in an accessible and intelligent way. It is an attempt to get beyond the immediacy of headlines and make available the immensely rich tradition of the Church in dealing with the dilemmas of human life that Pope Benedict so eloquently expresses.
“We are looking to spell out the richness of Catholic tradition and also the enormous contribution of the Catholic Church to this country and around the world. It is important to explain who the Pope is so people can better appreciate this historic visit.”
As the preface to “The Pope in the UK” sets out: “Today there are many gaps in public knowledge in these matters. This booklet seeks to address those gaps, not in a profound or systematic manner but just by way of some clear facts and indications.
“They will be helpful in preparation for this Papal Visit: helpful to those who are curious, helpful to those who need to understand a little more, helpful to those who are looking forward intently to these historic days.”
The cover of the booklet features the official logo of the Papal Visit. It was designed by leading architectural artist Brian Clarke and incorporates the Papal Visit motto “Heart speaks unto heart”, taken from Cardinal Newman’s writings.
Editor’s notes
The Papal Visit will take place from 16-19 September. Full details of the Pope’s itinerary will be published in July.
The image on the front cover is the official logo for the Papal Visit. It is designed by leading architectural artist Brian Clarke (regarded as the world’s leading artist in stained glass) and incorporates the motto “Heart Speaks unto heart”, taken from Cardinal Newman’s writings.
Cor ad Cor Loquitur – Heart Speaks unto Heart
The theme for Pope Benedict XVI’s 2010 visit to the UK is Cor ad cor loquitur – Heart speaks unto heart. Cardinal John Henry Newman chose the words as the motto to go on his coat of arms. Heart speaks unto heart is a fitting choice for this papal visit as, on the final day of his Apostolic Journey, the Holy Father will beatify Cardinal Newman – the much-loved Victorian theologian.
Origins of the motto
When Newman became a Cardinal in 1879, he had to choose a motto to go on his coat of arms. He chose the Latin words Cor ad Cor loquitur – heart speaks unto heart. Where did these words come from? At the time, Newman thought they came from the Imitation of Christ (written in the 1400s), but in fact he was mistaken – they’re from St. Francis de Sales (1567-1622) a French Bishop and great spiritual writer whom Newman revered. In fact, Newman chose to put a painting of St Francis above the altar in his own Chapel at the Birmingham Oratory.
‘Heart speaks to Heart’ – who is speaking to who?
The phrase has different levels, which together tell us a lot about Newman, his understanding of what it is to be human, and his vision of a humanity redeemed by Christ. Newman thought that true communication between us speaks from our heart to the heart of others around us – much more than just clever talking. He wrote in an Anglican sermon: ‘Eloquence and wit, shrewdness and dexterity, these plead a cause well and propagate it quickly, but it dies with them. It has no root in the hearts of men, and lives not out a generation.’ Truth speaks from the centre of the person, from their heart: ‘By a heart awake from the dead, and by affections set on heaven, we can… truly and without figure witness that Christ liveth.’ In the age of the Internet, Newman tells us that however we communicate, what we say should come from the heart, the fruits of a moral life lived in communion with Christ.
In fact, Christ speaks to us from his own Heart. ‘Thou art the living Flame, and ever burnest with love of man’ – he is ‘the Word, the Light, the Life, the Truth, Wisdom, the Divine Glory.’ So, in the end, it’s the Heart of God himself which speaks to us – in prayer, in the Mass, through the Scriptures. But also through other faithful Christians, and in the teachings of the Church. As Newman says, ‘when the Church speaks Thou dost speak.’ The Church has no other heart than the Heart of Christ himself.
Papal Visit logo
The image used for the official Papal visit logo is designed by the artist Brian Clarke. It is a detail from a stained glass window by Mr Clarke for the Papal Nunciature in London, which will be blessed by the Pope during his visit in September. The final work is in transparent stained glass and celebrates the intellectual and spiritual achievements of Thomas More, John Fisher and John Henry Newman. The blues and reds in the composition recall the rubies and ultramarines of medieval stained glass.
Brian Clarke b.1953 is internationally renowned as a painter and globally pre-eminent in the medium of stained glass. Among his other projects he was the artist for The Pyramid of Peace in Kazakhstan, The King Faisal Foundation in Saudi Arabia, The Holocaust Memorial in Darmstadt, The Stamford Cone in Connecticut and the Victoria Quarter in Leeds. Further information www.brianclarke.co.uk.
Download
You can download the Booklet: The Pope in the UK (pdf) here (PDF).
Listen to the Press Conference here:
MP3
(MP3).
Listen to the Q & A’s from the Press Conference here:
MP3
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You can view photographs from the Press Conference on our flickr stream.
