The Holy Father had expressed a wish to meet the elderly during the preparations for the State Visit to these islands. St. Peter’s Residence which lies within the parish of St. Anne’s, run by the Recollects was the place chosen so that the pope could fulfil his wish.
Around five in the afternoon, on 18th September, the Holy Father arrived at the home, He greeted the Sisters, the community of elderly people, the helpers and some invited guests. The parishioners were waiting outside the gates of the Residence to welcome him to St. Anne’s parish and St. Peter’s Home. Pope Benedict went over to them, stretched out his hand and with a smile on his face blessed them.
His words, his actions, his personal greeting offered to each resident ( he took everyone’s hand and made the sign of the cross were an unmistakeable sign of the love and esteem the Holy Father has for the elderly who are his peers. At the same time he thanked the nine retired priests who live there for having dedicated their lives to spreading the gospel in today’s world. Some residents who couldn’t come down to the main hall were not left out as the Pope went up in the lift to meet and speak with each one of them.
Enthusiasm
The enthusiasm generated by the Pope’s presence in the UK has been a source of joy and pride for the Catholic minority in the country (there are nearly six million Catholic in Great Britain). “We are euphoric; and the Bishops full of admiration for the generous words of welcome given to the Pope by Queen Elizabeth”. “It was a true delight to watch the Queen and the Pope, both in their eighties, together in the gardens of Holyrood Palace in Edinburgh”. A palace that curiously enough was once an Augustinian Priory before the Protestant Reformation.
On Saturday 18th, in the afternoon parishioners from St. Anne’s were joined by some of the Latin Americans who then made their way to Hyde Park for the Prayer Vigil. More than sixty thousand gathered to pray, united as one, with our chief Shepherd Pope Benedict. Without a doubt we will need a lot of time to absorb all that this visit has meant and given us. The Pope’s addresses have been dense yet with simple and down to earth language.
The Prime Minister, David Cameron, summed up the historic visit with these words. “Your Holiness, on this truly historic first State Visit to Britain you have spoken to a nation of six million Catholics but you have been heard by a nation of more than 60 million citizens and by many millions more all around the world. For you have offered a message not just to the Catholic Church but to each and every one of us of every faith and none. You have really challenged the whole country to sit up and think, and that can only be a good thing. Thank you”.