The final day of the visit focused very much on the beatification of Cardinal John Henry Newman in Cofton Park in Birmingham - adjacent, fittingly, to Rednal where Cardinal Newman was buried and the place where Newman and his community came for rest and recreation in the Lickey Hills.
Also in Replay the Visit
Events Timeline > Day One > Day Two > Day Three > Popemobile Routes > Papal Liturgies > Papal Visit Booklet > Reflection >Having beatified Newman, Pope Benedict XVI then made a private visit to the Oratory of St Philip Neri, Edgbaston, Birmingham where he became the first person to pray at the shrine for the “Blessed” John Henry Newman.
Pope Benedict concluded the day by meeting with the bishops of England, Scotland and Wales in Oscott College before returning to Rome from Birmingham International Airport.
"We give thanks to God for all those whose influence brought blessings to Cardinal Newman - especially those who had nurtured his faith within the Church of England and for Blessed Dominic of the Mother of God who first ministered to him sacramentally within the Catholic Church."
Archbishop Bernard Longley makes the humble request that Pope Benedict XVI beatifies Cardinal John Henry Newman to make him a 'Blessed'.
"It is right and fitting that we should recognise the holiness of a confessor, a son of this nation who, while not called to shed his blood for the Lord, bore eloquent witness to him in the course of a life devoted to the priestly ministry."
"When Blessed John Henry Newman came to live in Birmingham, he gave the name “Maryvale” to his first home here. The Oratory that he founded is dedicated to the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin."
"Holy Father, you give us new hearts for the tasks ahead especially in the wonderful gift of declaring John Henry Newman as a blessed model for us to follow."
"The welcoming cavalcade along Princes Street in Edinburgh reminded a worldwide audience of the Christian roots of our land."
"As we reflect on the human frailty that these tragic events so starkly reveal, we are reminded that, if we are to be effective Christian leaders, we must live lives of the utmost integrity, humility and holiness."
Then-Prime Minister David Cameron bids farewell to Pope Benedict XVI at the conclusion of the Papal Visit at Birmingham International Airport.
"Naturally, my visit was directed in a special way to the Catholics of the United Kingdom... It was especially moving to celebrate with them, here in Birmingham, the beatification of a great son of England, Cardinal John Henry Newman."
