Tag: “nigel baker” “uk ambassador blog”
22nd May 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
One of the most extraordinary aspects of Pope Francis’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land on 24-26 May is how it has started to bear fruit even before it has begun. Sadly, the lands that he will be visiting – the crucible for some of the most intractable conflicts in human history – are not known […]
Read more on The Pope’s pilgrimage to the Holy Land: bearing fruit | Reply (4)
17th March 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
When Pope Francis spoke about Ukraine at the Sunday Angelus on 2 March, he called for all Ukrainians to overcome misunderstandings and to build the future of the nation together and made “a heartfelt appeal to the international community to support every initiative on behalf of dialogue and concord”. Regrettably, there is one country in […]
Read more on Russia defies the Pope, and the world, on Ukraine | Reply
19th February 2014
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Baroness Warsi is the first ever British Minister for Faith in a British government. She is also Senior Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. In both roles, at home and abroad, and with the strong support of the Prime Minister, she has made religious freedom a personal priority: promoting and protecting people’s […]
Read more on Religion, Violence and Sectarianism | Reply
24th December 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Pope Francis places great emphasis in his Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Guadium on communication. In large part, he declares, communicating the Gospel is the Church’s principal mission statement. This is not, of course, a new message, although the emphasis may be. But it was perhaps no coincidence that the Holy See recently announced that the means of communication […]
Read more on Communicating the Good News | Reply (1)
18th December 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Religious Freedom Project of the Berkley Center for Religion, Peace and World Affairs at Georgetown University organised an important conference in Rome last week on the theme of ‘Christianity and Freedom’. A number of distinguished British academics took part. One of the questions asked was what more are governments doing to stop religious persecution […]
Read more on Christians in the Middle East: A Royal and Government Response | Reply
8th November 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
Diplomats represent their country’s interests. Traditionally, this leads to barely veiled competition between embassies accredited to third governments: for access, for influence, for commercial contracts. We will occasionally pull together for a common cause – EU embassies often do so as a matter of course – but generally as ‘coalitions of the willing’ rather than […]
Read more on Diplomatic Cooperation at the Holy See: The Case of UK – Australia | Reply
31st October 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
The Israeli ambassador to the Holy See, Zion Evrony, recently took the initiative to invite diplomatic colleagues and officials of the Holy See to the Great Synagogue of Rome. The synagogue is one of the largest in Europe, built in 1870 between the Tiber and the old Jewish ghetto. The Chief Rabbi of Rome, Dr […]
Read more on Christians and Jews: A Roman Initiative | Reply
9th October 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
10 October is the 11th World Day against the Death Penalty. The campaign represents an alliance of 145 NGOs, bar associations, unions and other bodies – including Catholic organisations like the Community of Sant’Egidio – that was set up in Rome on 13 May 2002.The United Kingdom, which supports its work, campaigns for worldwide abolition […]
Read more on Protect Life: End the Death Penalty | Reply (2)
27th September 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I suspect that until quite recently, not many people would have mentioned the Vatican in the same breath as the giants of global communications. Innovators like the BBC, global news operations like CNN, or social media like Facebook or Twitter. The Holy See speaks to us about tradition, the faith, the power of the pulpit. […]
Read more on Being Connected: The Holy See and Communications | Reply (1)
19th September 2013
This post was published when the author was in a previous role
I recently ran a competition on Twitter, inviting questions about the Holy See and the UK’s relationship with it. The response was impressive, with many searching questions. Below are the winners, their questions, and slightly lengthier answers than the 140 characters Twitter permits. Q. What made possible the great shift from historical anti-Catholicism to dialogue […]
Read more on Questions about the Holy See | Reply (1)
