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28-05-2005 The Scotsman Pope set for live link-up at Murrayfield By GETHIN CHAMBERLAIN CHIEF NEWS CORRESPONDENT AND EBEN HARRELL BOB GELDOF has invited the Pope to Scotland to conduct a mass at Murrayfield stadium to coincide with the Make Poverty History march in the run-up to the G8 summit. Talks with the stadium are believed to have already taken place with a view to staging the event on 2 July. The Vatican is understood to have told Mr Geldof that the Pope will be unable to attend in person, but that he could appear in a live link-up from Rome on a giant video screen set up in the stadium. There are also suggestions that Nelson Mandela could appear via a similar live link. Sources at the Scottish Rugby Union last night confirmed that they had been approached with the proposal and they indicated that the Saturday event would be followed four days later by a massive music concert at the stadium as part of Sir Bob's proposed Live 8 event. Catholic Church leaders are excited at the prospect of an event involving the new pontiff. Cardinal Keith O'Brien said: "So far as the bishops and people of Scotland are concerned, Pope Benedict will be welcome in Scotland if he accepts Sir Bob Geldof's invitation to come." Sources in the Catholic Church said that Sir Bob had approached the Vatican with a proposal that the Pope should attend in person to conduct a mass that would be broadcast around the world. The Live Aid organiser was in Rome yesterday for talks with Tony Blair, the British Prime Minister, and Silvio Berlusconi, his Italian counterpart. One problem that organisers of both planned Murrayfield events must overcome is that the stadium currently has no pitch. The turf has recently been lifted and the SRU was intending to reseed the ground. If the events are to go ahead, it will have to be returfed at considerable cost. If that was to happen, the SRU would be expected to turn to the Scottish Executive, which is keen on the concert plan, for financial assistance to cover the cost. Bands including Franz Ferdinand and Teenage Fanclub have expressed an interest in appearing at a concert and there has also been speculation linking Coldplay, Oasis, Travis and Robbie Williams with the show. An announcement about the plans is expected from Sir Bob on Tuesday. Sources close to the star yesterday suggested that plans were at an advanced stage for the concert on 6 July, but they would not comment on the possibility of a Papal mass. The last visit of a pope to Scotland was in 1982 when John Paul II went to Murrayfield for a Pilgrimage of Youth gathering of around 45,000 young Catholics from northern England and Scotland. The Pope conducted a 45-minute ceremony, routinely interrupted by applause and football-style cheers and songs, memorably telling his audience: "Young people of Scotland, the Pope loves you. You are the Church for tomorrow; you are our hope for the future." The visit to Murrayfield was followed a week later by a meeting with Ronald Reagan, in which the Pope pleaded for world peace and an end to poverty. Since his election on 19 April, Pope Benedict XVI has been busy handling internal appointments and affairs at the Vatican. Less than a week after formally taking seat, he moved to have his predecessor John Paul II made a saint. He has spoken out on several international issues, most recently meeting with bishops from Rwanda to discuss a lasting reconciliation there. Despite that hectic schedule, he is still yet to leave Rome. He will make his first pilgrimage tomorrow when he leads a religious service in Bari in southern Italy.
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................................................................................................................. Copyright ©2004 Gethin Chamberlain. All rights reserved. |
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