Pope Saint John Paul II, was greeted by Cardinal Basil Hume and the then Bishop of Arundel and Brighton, Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, shortly after his plane landed at London Gatwick Airport. In kneeling to kiss the British soil his thirteenth Pastoral Visit began.
Addressing the crowds he said: “So I begin my pastoral visit to Britain with the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ: “Peace be with you”. May the God of peace and reconciliation be with you all. May he bless your families and homes with his deep and abiding peace.”
John Paul II said: "We stand in urgent need of reconciliation."
