ROME, OCT. 26, 2009 (http://www.zenit.org«>Zenit.org).- Scotland’s secretary of state will be traveling to Rome in the hopes his country will make it into the papal itinerary for a United Kingdom tour next year.
Cardinal Keith O’Brien, archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, will travel with Jim Murphy.
Murphy said: «It would be a fantastic occasion if the Pope were to visit Britain. The prime minister wants us to work closely with the Vatican. It is too early to say if the Pope will be coming to Scotland next year, but it certainly won’t be for a lack of trying on my part.»
Archbishop Vincent Nichols of Westminster said in a statement late last month that news of a possible visit to the United Kingdom «fills us with joy.»