Irish President to Reciprocate Queen's Reconcilliation Gesture

Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip were welcomed to Ireland in 2011 by then President Mary McAleese.

From AFP

President Michael D. Higgins is to become the first Irish head of state to make a state visit to Britain, in another symbolic step forward for relations between the neighbouring countries. 

The visit in April will come three years after Britain's Queen Elizabeth made a groundbreaking trip to the republic, which experts said put Anglo-Irish relations on a new footing. 

Higgins's visit will be seen as a further sign of progress following the hard-won peace in Northern Ireland, which remains part of the United Kingdom. 

Higgins's Aras an Uachtarain official residence confirmed he has accepted an invitation for a three-day state visit. 

The details are yet to be fleshed out but the 72-year-old poet is expected to stay at Windsor Castle, west of London, from April 8 to 10. 

Though Higgins has visited Britain several times since taking office in November 2011, they were not official state visits, where Britain lays on the pomp and ceremony.

Queen Elizabeth Pays Tribute to English Seminary in Rome

From Catholic World News

Queen Elizabeth II has paid tribute to relations between the United Kingdom and the Holy See on the occasion of the 650th anniversary of the founding of the Venerable English College in Rome. 

“In 1362, English residents in Rome established a ‘Hospice of the English’ to care for English pilgrims,” she said in her message for the occasion. “The royal arms of King Henry IV still adorn your walls to mark the 50th anniversary of that foundation and the close relationship with the Crown. The English Hospice was the origin of what has now become the Venerable English College, following its re-foundation by Pope Gregory XIII in 1579.” 

“The presence of the Duke of Gloucester at your Martyrs' Day Feast in this 650th anniversary year is a sign of the strength of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Holy See,” she added. “It is also recognition of the high esteem in which the Venerable English College is held as a training ground for pastors, priests and future leaders of the Catholic Church of England and Wales.” 

Additional sources for this story Some links will take you to other sites, in a new window.

• The strength of the relationship between the United Kingdom and the Holy See (L’Osservatore Romano)
• Pope exhorts English seminarians to stir up new faith (CWN, 12/3)

Buckingham Palace Announces US State Visit to Great Britain

The press secretary to H.M. Queen Elizabeth II has announced a State Visit to the United Kingdom that the Obama's will undertake May 24-26, 2011.

The community agitators currently occupying the White House could learn much from Queen Elizabeth about service, duty, and embodying a nation's noblest and highest ideals. Unfortunately, we have little hope that they will. Given the President's consistently boorish behavior toward Great Britain and its leaders, we wonder if he will be returning his desk given to the White House by Queen Victoria, or the Capitol building's Minton floor tiles also given by Great Britain.  Or will he present Her Majesty with another ipod loaded with The One's most memorable speeches?

We dread this ghetto trash representing the United States in any forum, much less to America's closest and most faithful ally. Our British readers should know that this couple in no way represents America, as the world will unmistakably see in November 2012.

The President of the United States, President Barack Obama, has accepted an invitation from The Queen to pay a State Visit to the United Kingdom from Tuesday 24th May to Thursday 26th May 2011.

The President will be accompanied by Mrs Obama and will stay at Buckingham Palace.

Background

Previous visits by American Presidents include:

President Eisenhower paid a visit to The Queen at Balmoral Castle in 1959:

President and Mrs Kennedy dined with The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace in June 1961;

President Nixon had lunch with The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace in February 1969 and again visited in 1970;

President Carter was received by The Queen in London in 1977;

President and Mrs Reagan made an official visit to the UK in June 1982, staying at Windsor Castle;

President and Mrs Bush had lunch with The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh in June 1989;

President and Mrs Clinton visited The Queen in December 2000;

President George W Bush and Mrs Bush had lunch with The Queen on 19th July 2001 at Buckingham Palace;

President George W Bush and Mrs Bush made a State Visit to the UK in November 2003;

President George W Bush and Mrs Bush visited The Queen at Windsor Castle on 15th June, 2008;

President and Mrs Obama met The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh at Buckingham Palace during the G20 meeting in London in April 2009.

Queen Elizabeth's Welcome to Pope Benedict XVI

Address of H. M. Queen Elizabeth II

State Welcome to the United Kingdom

Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh

Thursday, 16 September 2010

Your Holiness,

I am delighted to welcome you to the United Kingdom, and particularly to Scotland, on your first visit as Pope. I recall with great pleasure the memorable pastoral visit of the late Pope John Paul II to this country in 1982. I also have vivid memories of my four visits to the Vatican, and of meeting some of your predecessors on other occasions. I am most grateful to them for receiving, over the years, a number of members of my family with such warm hospitality.

Much has changed in the world during the nearly thirty years since Pope John Paul’s visit. In this country, we deeply appreciate the involvement of the Holy See in the dramatic improvement in the situation in Northern Ireland. Elsewhere the fall of totalitarian regimes across central and eastern Europe has allowed greater freedom for hundreds of millions of people. The Holy See continues to have an important role in international issues, in support of peace and development and in addressing common problems like poverty and climate change.

Your Holiness, your presence here today reminds us of our common Christian heritage, and of the Christian contribution to the encouragement of world peace, and to the economic and social development of the less prosperous countries of the world. We are all aware of the special contribution of the Roman Catholic Church particularly in its ministry to the poorest and most deprived members of society, its care for the homeless and for the education provided by its extensive network of schools.

Religion has always been a crucial element in national identity and historical self-consciousness. This has made the relationship between the different faiths a fundamental factor in the necessary cooperation within and between nation states. It is, therefore, vital to encourage a greater mutual, and respectful understanding. We know from experience that through committed dialogue, old suspicions can be transcended and a greater mutual trust established.

I know that reconciliation was a central theme in the life of Cardinal John Henry Newman, for whom you will be holding a Mass of Beatification on Sunday. A man who struggled with doubt and uncertainty, his contribution to the understanding of Christianity continues to influence many. I am pleased that your visit will also provide an opportunity to deepen the relationship between the Roman Catholic Church and the established Church of England and the Church of Scotland.

Your Holiness, in recent times you have said that ‘religions can never become vehicles of hatred, that never by invoking the name of God can evil and violence be justified’. Today, in this country, we stand united in that conviction. We hold that freedom to worship is at the core of our tolerant and democratic society.

On behalf of the people of the United Kingdom I wish you a most fruitful and memorable visit.

Click here for live webcast of the Papal visit.

Pope Benedict Begins State Visit to the United Kingdom

Address of His Holiness Benedict XVI

State Welcome to the United Kingdom

Palace of Holyroodhouse, Edinburgh

Thursday, 16 September 2010

Your Majesty,

Thank you for your gracious invitation to make an official visit to the United Kingdom and for your warm words of greeting on behalf of the British people. In thanking Your Majesty, allow me to extend my own greetings to all the people of the United Kingdom and to hold out a hand of friendship to each one.

It is a great pleasure for me to start my journey by saluting the members of the Royal Family, thanking in particular His Royal Highness the Duke of Edinburgh for his kind welcome to me at Edinburgh Airport. I express my gratitude to Your Majesty’s present and previous Governments and to all those who worked with them to make this occasion possible, including Lord Patten and former Secretary of State Murphy. I would also like to acknowledge with deep appreciation the work of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on the Holy See, which has contributed greatly to strengthening the friendly relations existing between the Holy See and the United Kingdom.

As I begin my visit to the United Kingdom in Scotland’s historic capital city, I greet in a special way First Minister Salmond and the representatives of the Scottish Parliament. Just like the Welsh and Northern Ireland Assemblies, may the Scottish Parliament grow to be an expression of the fine traditions and distinct culture of the Scots and strive to serve their best interests in a spirit of solidarity and concern for the common good.

The name of Holyroodhouse, Your Majesty’s official residence in Scotland, recalls the “Holy Cross” and points to the deep Christian roots that are still present in every layer of British life. The monarchs of England and Scotland have been Christians from very early times and include outstanding saints like Edward the Confessor and Margaret of Scotland. As you know, many of them consciously exercised their sovereign duty in the light of the Gospel, and in this way shaped the nation for good at the deepest level. 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. Your forefathers’ respect for truth and justice, for mercy and charity come to you from a faith that remains a mighty force for good in your kingdom, to the great benefit of Christians and non-Christians alike.

We find many examples of this force for good throughout Britain’s long history. Even in comparatively recent times, due to figures like William Wilberforce and David Livingstone, Britain intervened directly to stop the international slave trade. Inspired by faith, women like Florence Nightingale served the poor and the sick and set new standards in healthcare that were subsequently copied everywhere. John Henry Newman, whose beatification I will celebrate shortly, was one of many British Christians of his age whose goodness, eloquence and action were a credit to their countrymen and women. These, and many people like them, were inspired by a deep faith born and nurtured in these islands.

Even in our own lifetime, we can recall how 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, who were thought unfit to live. I also recall the regime’s attitude to Christian pastors and religious who spoke the truth in love, opposed the Nazis and paid for that opposition with their lives. As we reflect on the sobering lessons of the atheist extremism of the twentieth century, let us never forget how the exclusion of God, religion and virtue from public life leads ultimately to a truncated vision of man and of society and thus to a “reductive vision of the person and his destiny” (Caritas in Veritate, 29).

Sixty-five years ago, Britain played an essential role in forging the post-war international consensus which favoured the establishment of the United Nations and ushered in a hitherto unknown period of peace and prosperity in Europe. In more recent years, the international community has followed closely events in Northern Ireland which have led to the signing of the Good Friday Agreement and the devolution of powers to the Northern Ireland Assembly. Your Majesty’s Government and the Government of Ireland, together with the political, religious and civil leaders of Northern Ireland, have helped give birth to a peaceful resolution of the conflict there. I encourage everyone involved to continue to walk courageously together on the path marked out for them towards a just and lasting peace.

Looking abroad, the United Kingdom remains a key figure politically and economically on the international stage. Your Government and people are the shapers of ideas that still have an impact far beyond the British Isles. This places upon them a particular duty to act wisely for the common good. Similarly, because their opinions reach such a wide audience, 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. May all Britons continue to live by the values of honesty, respect and fair-mindedness that have won them the esteem and admiration of many.

Today, the United Kingdom strives to be a modern and multicultural society. In this challenging enterprise, may it always maintain its respect for those traditional values and cultural expressions that more aggressive forms of secularism no longer value or even tolerate. Let it not obscure the Christian foundation that underpins its freedoms; and may that patrimony, which has always served the nation well, constantly inform the example your Government and people set before the two billion members of the Commonwealth and the great family of English-speaking nations throughout the world.

May God bless Your Majesty and all the people of your realm. Thank you.

Click here for live webcast of the papal visit.

Prince William to Lead Project Setting Aside Thousands of Playing Fields in Tribute to Queen's Diamond Jubilee (Welsh Subtitles)

Prince William has become patron of an ambitious effort to set aside and protect in perpetuity 2,012 playing fields throughout the United Kingdom by 2012, as a personal tribute and in honor of Queen Elizabeth's Diamond Jubilee in that year.

The program, which also culminates in the year in which Britain will host the Summer Olympics, will ensure that people across the country, both now and for generations to come, have access to outdoor recreational spaces for sport and physical activity.

State Opening of the British Parliament

H.M. Queen Elizabeth II presided over the State Opening of Parliament this morning. Today's pageantry, marking the start of a new legislative session, and the Queen's Speech can be seen here. The ceremony is the fifty-seventh of the Queen's reign and was first televised fifty years ago. The 1958 ceremony can be seen in the following video:

Her Majesty Strips Mugabe of Knighthood

The following is from the superb blog, The Monarchist.

This is not the right time for the mangy old British lion to rise to its height and say this election is not good enough so we'll strip you of your knighthood. — Lord Malloch Brown, British Foreign Office Minister

Robert Mugabe pictured with the Queen during his state visit to Britain in 1994, when he was awarded the honorary knighthood

Despite both Gordon Brown and Lord Malloch Brown, the Foreign Office Minister, indicating in recent days that there would be little point in stripping him of the knighthood, the decision has been taken in view of the extreme nature of his actions in Zimbabwe and the way his regime has attacked opposition members.

The Foreign Office has been in discussions with Buckingham Palace over the move and it has just been agreed that the Zimbabwe president will no longer have the title that was bestowed on him in 1994. The Queen is stripping Robert Mugabe of his knighthood for 'abject disregard for democracy'.

South African Archbishop Desmond Tutu said: "He has mutated into something quite unbelievable. He has turned into a kind of Frankenstein for his people."

In 1994, during the Premiership of John Major, Mugabe was bestowed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath by the Queen. It entitles him to use the letters KCB, but not to use the title "Sir."

Archbishop Faces Fresh Pressure Over Queen’s ‘worry’ at Sharia Speech

From The Times

The Archbishop of Canterbury faces renewed pressure today after the Queen was reported to be concerned about his comments on the use of Islamic law in Britain.

The Queen was said to be worried about the continuing controversy surrounding Dr Rowan Williams’ belief that it was “unavoidable” that aspects of Sharia would be incorporated into the English legal system.

The Times has learnt that the Prince of Wales has already distanced himself from the Archbishop’s speech last week, fearing that his comments have damaged multi-faith relations.

According to The Daily Telegraph today, the Queen is also distressed over the controversy which she fears threatens to undermine the authority of the Archbishop and damage the Church of England, which already faces schism over homosexual clergy.

A royal source told the newspaper: “I have no idea what her view is on what the Archbishop said about Sharia. But the Queen is worried, coming at such a difficult time in the Church’s history, that the fallout may sap the authority of the Church.”

The Queen, as Supreme Governor of the Church of England, is the only person with the power to dismiss the Archbishop of Canterbury, but she would not act unless instructed to by the Prime Minister.

However, Dr Williams’ position would become untenable if it became known that he had lost the monarch’s confidence.

The Prince of Wales, a champion of good relations with Islam, has told friends he is concerned that the Archbishop’s speech is in danger of being taken out of context and distilled into scaremongering headlines.

The Prince fears that the misinterpretation of the Archbishop’s comments that Sharia was inevitable in Britain could harm relations with Islam and the Islamic world.

The Archbishop admitted on Monday that his intervention on the issue had been “clumsy" but refused to back down. He apologised to the Church of England for any “misleading choice of words” but made clear that he stood by his right to tackle such issues.

The Queen’s affection for the Commonwealth is well known and many Commonwealth countries with large Muslim populations, such as Nigeria, are incredulous at the Archbishop’s apparent appeasement of Islam.

The Queen is reported to have intervened previously in Anglican affairs over the appointment of an openly homosexual priest as the Bishop of Reading in 2003. She is said to have twice raised the issue with Tony Blair, then the Prime Minister.

The Queen has become increasingly interested in multi-faith issues. She used her last Christmas speech to call for all religions to work together to bridge the divide between young and old. The broadcast also featured unprecedented scenes from a mosque, a Hindu temple and a Jewish reception.

The content was seen as moving her closer to the Prince of Wales’s strongly held view that the monarch should be the “defender of faiths”.

The Queen emphasised that it was easy to focus on the differences between religions rather than what they have in common. “The wisdom and experience of the great religions point to the need to nurture and guide the young, and to encourage respect for the elderly,” she said.

Buckingham Palace refused last night to confirm or deny that the Queen had expressed concerns about the Archbishop’s views. A spokes-woman said: “I have never heard a view expressed by the Queen at all. We are not confirming or making any comment on this story.”

Lambeth Palace and the Church of England also declined to comment.

The Prince of Wales, who will take the title Defender of the Faith when he becomes king, has said previously that he wished to be seen rather as a defender of faiths. However, his wish for a multi-faith coronation was dismissed by the Church of England which asserted the importance of a Christian-only service designed by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

A history of conflict

—— Thomas à Becket and Henry II: when Henry reasserted his ancestral rights over the Church, Becket refused to comply. Four knights murdered Becket in Canterbury Cathedral in 1170

—— Cardinal Wolsey and Henry VIII: the Cardinal fell from grace when he was unable to persuade the Pope that Henry should be granted a divorce from Catherine of Aragon

—— Thomas Cranmer, who compiled the first English Book of Common Prayer, was the first Protestant Archbishop. Queen Mary had him burnt at the stake for heresy and treason in 1556

HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN'S CHRISTMAS BROADCAST

One of the features of growing old is a heightened awareness of change. To remember what happened 50 years ago means that it is possible to appreciate what has changed in the meantime. It also makes you aware of what has remained constant.

In my experience, the positive value of a happy family is one of the factors of human existence that has not changed. The immediate family of grandparents, parents and children, together with their extended family, is still the core of a thriving community.

When Prince Philip and I celebrated our Diamond Wedding last month, we were much aware of the affection and support of our own family as they gathered round us for the occasion.

Now today, of course, marks the birth of Jesus Christ. Among other things, it is a reminder that it is the story of a family; but of a family in very distressed circumstances. Mary and Joseph found no room at the inn; they had to make do in a stable, and the new-born Jesus had to be laid in a manger. This was a family which had been shut out.

Perhaps it was because of this early experience that, throughout his ministry, Jesus of Nazareth reached out and made friends with people whom others ignored or despised. It was in this way that he proclaimed his belief that, in the end, we are all brothers and sisters in one human family.

The Christmas story also draws attention to all those people who are on the edge of society - people who feel cut off and disadvantaged; people who, for one reason or another, are not able to enjoy the full benefits of living in a civilised and law-abiding community. For these people the modern world can seem a distant and hostile place.

It is all too easy to 'turn a blind eye', 'to pass by on the other side', and leave it to experts and professionals. All the great religious teachings of the world press home the message that everyone has a responsibility to care for the vulnerable. Fortunately, there are many groups and individuals, often unsung and unrewarded, who are dedicated to ensuring that the 'outsiders' are given a chance to be recognised and respected. However, each one of us can also help by offering a little time, a talent or a possession, and taking a share in the responsibility for the well-being of those who feel excluded.

And also today I want to draw attention to another group of people who deserve our thoughts this Christmas. We have all been conscious of those who have given their lives, or who have been severely wounded, while serving with the Armed Forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. The dedication of the National Armed Forces Memorial was also an occasion to remember those who have suffered while serving in these and every other place of unrest since the end of the Second World War.

For their families, Christmas will bring back sad memories, and I pray that all of you, who are missing those who are dear to you, will find strength and comfort in your families and friends.

A familiar introduction to an annual Christmas Carol Service contains the words: 'Because this would most rejoice his heart, let us remember, in his name, the poor and the helpless, the cold, the hungry, and the oppressed; the sick and those who mourn, the lonely and the unloved.'

Wherever these words find you, and in whatever circumstances, I want to wish you all a blessed Christmas.

Watch the broadcast on the BBC News website.

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