Pope Benedict XVI does not share his predecessor's wanderlust, but senior Roman Catholics hope that he can still soon be lured to this country. One prominent clergyman tells Mandrake that there are discussions afoot about the 81-year-old Pontiff visiting Britain for the beatification of Cardinal Newman, which is likely to be announced in the next few months.
"He has a great devotion to Newman," says my informant.
A spokesman for Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, the Archbishop of Westminster, says a visit would be "welcomed by both the bishops and all the faithful".
Aware of the Vatican's distaste for presumption, he is, however, keen to stress that the cardinal is working on the assumption that the Pope would not attend the ceremony, which would be the first step towards Cardinal Newman becoming a saint.
"It is normal practice for the Pope to appoint a senior prelate to preside," he says.
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(Source: TT)