HE Archbishop Antonio Mennini is formally welcomed by the Catholic Church in England and Wales at a special Mass in Westminster Cathedral

The new Apostolic Nuncio to the Court of St James, His Excellency Archbishop Antonio Mennini, was formally welcomed to the UK yesterday evening by the Bishops' Conference of England and Wales. This welcome was celebrated with a special Mass in Westminster Cathedral, during which Archbishop Mennini was presented to the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

The Archbishop of Westminster, the Most Rev Vincent Nichols, was the principal celebrant at the Eucharist, and was joined by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor and several other bishops and high ranking clerics from England and Wales. These included the Metropolitan Archbishops of Birmingham and Southwark and the Ordinary of the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, Fr Keith Newton . Many religious and lay-faithful were also present at the sung solemn Mass.

During his address, Archbishop Vincent Nichols paid tribute to Archbishop Mennini's ministry to date, which has been filled with important contributions to the Church's universal mission. One of the highlights in Antonio Mennini's varied career, according to Vincent Nichols, was his mission as the Papal representative, and later the Apostolic Nuncio, to the Russian Federation. It was during his time in Russia that the relationship between the Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches began to improve dramatically.

In fact, as Archbishop Nichols pointed out, the Patriarch of Moscow and all the Russias, His Holiness Kirill I, highly praised Archbishop Mennini before he left Russia for the UK. At a farewell meeting, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church emphasised the Nuncio's "personal contribution in settling difficult problems in relations between our Churches." Adding that, "With God's mercy, these problems are being positively settled, which changes the climate of the bilateral relations for the better." This, improvement was, according to the Patriarch, "in many respects, [Mennini's] achievement as a plenipotentiary representative of the Holy See."

HE Antonio Mennini also addressed the congregation, to thank the bishops and people of England and Wales for their warm welcome, and to ask for their prayers as he begins his new mission. He also spoke of the Papal visit and the important relationship that exists between the Holy See and the UK, as well as between the Anglican Communion and the Roman Catholic Church. He also seemed delighted with England's ancient title, "Mary's Dowry" - ending his address with a prayer for Our Lady's intercession.

Archbishop Mennini's warm personal qualities and kindness were apparent to all during the Mass, and he stuck me as a man of prayer and humility. We can be assured that his mission to both Church and State in the UK will be guided by the Holy Spirit, for many poor souls have their hopes pinned on him!

Photos (click to enlarge) taken by Marcin Mazur at Flickr Catholic Church (England and Wales) - see below. To see more photos of this event, please click here.

[Picture note: Top: HE Archbishop Antonio Mennini addresses the congregation during Mass, with Archbishop Vincent Nichols enthroned in the background; credited and attributed to Marcin Mazur © Mazur/catholicchurch.org.uk at Flickr Catholic Church England and Wales, and published according to the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence. Bottom: HE Archbishop Antonio Mennini, HE Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, Archbishop Vincent Nichols and the Bishops of England and Wales assembled in Westminster Cathedral's sacristy; credited and attributed to Marcin Mazur © Mazur/catholicchurch.org.uk at Flickr Catholic Church England and Wales, and published according to the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 2.0 Generic Licence.]