New Archbishop of Birmingham: City faiths must work together
The new Archbishop of Birmingham extended his hand of friendship to multi-faith leaders across the city as his new appointment was announced yesterday.
The Pope announced that Bishop Bernard Longley will succeed Archbishop Vincent Nichols in the second most important posting in the Roman Catholic hierarchy of England and Wales.
The appointment, which comes into effect from December 8, comes ahead of a significant year as the Pope is expected to visit the city in 2010.
One of the new archbishop’s first tasks is likely to be welcoming Pope Benedict XVI to Birmingham for the beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman in 2010.
Cardinal Newman, who died in 1890, is predicted to become the first English-born saint who was not a martyr since the Reformation.
The new Archbishop, currently Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster, said he was delighted to take up the new post.
Bishop Longley is one of the most popular Roman Catholic Bishops in the UK and known for his geniality but he has also caused some controversy during his time at Westminster.
Two years ago he was criticised for helping organise masses for homosexuals and earlier this year, he said that the Church should not condemn those who commit suicide.
In an interview with the Birmingham Post yesterday, he said: “The Church’s position on suicide has not changed – suicide is always seen as a grave sin but our understanding of human nature has developed so that we can see that people in those circumstances are very often affected by mental illness. The balance of their own judgment is undermined and the Catholic Church believes that it is only when a person fully understands what they are doing and fully consents to it that it is a sin. We want to bring a note of understanding.”
