Scottish Catholic Observer

Cardinal Keith O’Brien, Britain’s most senior Catholic clergyman, has led the bishops of Scotland in welcoming the Holy Father’s appointment of a new Apostolic nuncio to Great Britain.

Pope Benedict XVI has chosen Italian Archbishop Antonio Mennini (right) as the Vatican’s new representative to this country.

Archbishop Mennini, 63, is currently based in Moscow and has been the Vatican’s representative to Russia since 2002. The archbishop, who was also appointed Apostolic nuncio to Uzbekistan in 2008, is expected to take up his new post in the UK in the new year.

Cardinal’s welcome

On behalf of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland, Cardinal Keith O’Brien warmly welcomed the new nuncio.

“As a Bishops’ Conference here in Scotland, we very much look forward to welcoming you to our country and to meeting you regularly at the meetings of our Bishops’ Conference each year,” he said. “Our country has always had very strong links with the Holy See and especially in the person of our successive Popes, with the links having been strengthened in recent years, particularly through the visits of Pope John Paul II and just recently Pope Benedict XVI to our country.

“We promise you the ongoing support of our prayers, as you move from your service in Russia to service in our countries here in the United Kingdom.”

Cardinal O’Brien also paid tribute to the previous Apostolic Nuncio Archbishop Faustino Sainz Muñoz, who retired from the position due to serious ill health.

Wealth of experience

Archbishop Mennini will bring a wealth of experience as a Vatican diplomat to his new role.

He was ordained a priest of the Rome Diocese in 1974 and consecrated bishop in 2000. He has previously served as nuncio in Bulgaria. As a young priest, Fr Mennini was involved in negotiations surrounding the kidnapping of the former Prime Minster of Italy Aldo Moro by the terrorist group the Red Brigades. He served as a go between the family of Mr Moro and the Red Brigades, who had kidnapped Moro in 1978 and eventually killed him after 55 days in captivity.

Though based in Russia since 2002 he did not officially become the Apostolic nuncio to the Russia Federation until earlier this year, when he became the first man to hold that role. This was a result of Pope Benedict XVI and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev agreeing to upgrade relations between the two sides to full diplomatic ties last December.

Ecumenical role

A key part of Archbishop Mennini’s work in Russia was improving relations between the Catholic and Orthodox churches.

He told Vatican Radio in March 2007 that a Russian Catholic-Orthodox commission has been working to investigate and resolve conflicts and tensions, usually involving Orthodox claims that Catholics have been trying to proselytize Orthodox believers.

The work is going well, the archbishop said, and the members are working in ‘an optimum climate of friendship and understanding.’

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