London, 14 October 2019. On Sunday 13 October 2019 His Holiness Pope Francis presided over the Canonisation of the Blessed John Henry Newman in St Peter´s Square, Vatican City. To mark the occasion a series of events took place in Rome to mark this historic and blessed occasion.
The Delegation was lead by the Delegate for Great Britain and Ireland, Mr Anthony Bailey, OBE. Among other knights and dames present on this occasion were delegation prior HE Vincent, Cardinal Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, The Rev Canon Peter Newby, and Mr James Drabble.
The weekend programme included a lecture “Newman the Prophet: A saint of our Times” at the Angelicum University in Rome. This was then followed by a Vigil of Prayer at the Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore in Rome presided over by the Most Reverend Bernard Longley, Archbishop of Birmingham and His Eminence Stanisław Cardinal Ryłko, Prefect of the Basilica.
A Celebratory Concert followed with the singers of the Schola Cantorum of the London Oratory School at the Basilica Papale di Santa Maria Maggiore.
A Pontifical Mass of Thanksgiving took place on Monday 14 October 2019 at the Basilica di San Giovanni in Laterano presided by Cardinal Vincent Nichols.
Well over 150,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City, from first light for the moving Canonisation ceremony and mass. Four other new Saints from Brazil, Switzerland, Italy and India were canonised alongside St John Henry Newman.
Alongside hundreds of clergy from cardinals to parish priests foreign dignitaries present included Sergio Mattarella, President of the Italian Republic, Britain’s Prince of Wales, the Brazilian and Taiwanese vice presidents as well as ministers from Ireland and India.
John Henry Newman, the theologian and educational reformer was formally approved by Pope Francis to be elevated to sainthood in July 2019. He was the first English person who has lived since the 17th century to be officially recognised as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church.
Born in London in 1801, Newman converted to Catholicism in 1845 and moved to Dublin in 1854 to set up the new university. Newman was one of the most prominent converts to Catholicism from Anglicanism of the 19th century. In Ireland, he was best known for his role in the founding of the Catholic University of Ireland, later UCD. Cardinal Newman was proclaimed venerable by Pope John Paul II in 1991 and was beatified in 2010 by Pope Benedict XVI during his Papal Visit to Britain and granted the title of “blessed”.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster and Prior of the British and Irish Delegation of the Constantinian Order said in a statement “This is a moment of great pride. Foremost in our minds was the declaration of a saint who was a priest here. John Henry Newman is known for many great qualities, but we remember him particularly for the kindness and compassion of his ministry to the people of Birmingham. At his death, they turned out in their thousands to salute a much-loved priest on his funeral procession through the streets of Birmingham.”
The British Ambassador to the Holy See, HE Sally Axworthy, also said “I am delighted that Pope Francis announced the canonisation of Cardinal John Henry Newman this morning.Cardinal Newman had a major impact on Catholic theology and on education worldwide, making him a truly global Briton. I enjoyed learning about his life and teachings during my recent visits to the London, Birmingham and Oxford Oratories. He brought his experience from the Anglican Church to his work as a Catholic, bridging the two traditions. The canonisation will be an important moment for Britain, and for UK-Holy See relations.”