Archbishop of Canterbury tells Pope he will get warm welcome if he visits UK

The Archbishop of Canterbury has praised Pope Leo for speaking out about injustice after their historic meeting at the Vatican.

Dame Sarah Mullally also assured the pontiff of a “warm welcome” should he visit the UK.

The archbishop, the first woman to hold the highest ministry of the Church of England, met with the Pope at a time when both religious leaders have urged peace amid ongoing war.

The meeting comes just weeks after Donald Trump’s broadside at the Pope, who the US president branded “weak on crime, and terrible for foreign policy” and demanded the pontiff “focus on being a great Pope, not a politician”.

The leader of the world’s Catholics had used his first Easter message to strongly criticise war, calling on “those who have weapons (to) lay them down”.

Dame Sarah has previously said she stood in solidarity with the Pope’s calls for peace.

On Monday, in her address to him after their private meeting at the Apostolic Palace – a building which includes the Pope’s private apartment and top administrative offices of the Holy See – she paid tribute to him for speaking “powerfully about the many injustices in our world today”.

She said: “Your Holiness, you have spoken powerfully about the many injustices in our world today, but you have spoken even more powerfully about hope.

Your pilgrimage to Africa was full of life and joy.

“The world needed this message at this time – thank you.

It reminded us that despite our sufferings, people long for life in all its fullness and countless people are working each day for this vision of the common good.”
She said while there is “inhuman violence, deep division and rapid societal change” in the world, “we must keep telling a more hopeful story”.

In October, the King and Pope Leo made history when they prayed together in a symbolic moment of unity for Anglicans and Roman Catholics across the globe.

It was the first time a British monarch, the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, had prayed at a public service with the Pope, head of the Catholic Church, since the Reformation.

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The archbishop told the Pope: “Please be assured of a warm welcome from the Church of England should you honour the United Kingdom with a visit.”
Dame Sarah pledged to “remain united with you in prayer: prayer for peace in our world; prayer for justice; and prayer that every person may come to discover the fullness of life that God offers” in the years to come.

Among gifts offered to the Pope from the archbishop was a jar of honey made from nectar from beehives in Lambeth Palace Garden in London, described by her office as “a simple and hospitable token, rooted in place and daily life”.

After her audience, with the Pope, the archbishop joined the pontiff for a service of prayer in the Chapel of Urban VIII, with the pair saying the grace together.

She is accompanied on the trip by Archbishop of Westminster Richard Moth, who is the leader of Catholics in England and Wales.

Dame Sarah made history when she was named the first female Archbishop of Canterbury last year, and had also served as the first female Bishop of London.

While the Church of England first ordained women priests in 1994, women cannot become priests in the Catholic Church.