Visit to Rome of the Archbishop of York

The Archbishop of York, His Grace Most Reverend Stephen Cottrell, made an official visit to the Holy See from 20 to 24 May 2023. Archbishop Cottrell is Primate of the northern province of the Church of England, and is a member of the House of Lords of the British parliament and of the Privy Council of King Charles III. The Archbishop was accompanied by his wife, Mrs Rebecca Cottrell, and by some members of his personal staff.

On Monday 22 May, Archbishop Cottrell and his entourage were received in private audience by Pope Francis. During their informal conversation, the Holy Father underlined the importance of Christians walking together, working together and praying together. The Archbishop presented the Pope with a ceramic bowl created by his wife. The bowl was inscribed with words from the Canticle of the Creatures of St Francis and an image of the Tree of Life.

On Tuesday 24 May, the Archbishop’s party had an opportunity for meetings and discussions in the General Secretariat of the Synod, the Dicastery for Evangelisation, the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity, where they were received by the Prefect, Cardinal Kurt Koch. The visit concluded on Wednesday 25 May with a seminar on the ecumenical dimension of the work of evangelisation hosted at the Anglican Centre in Rome, addressed by Archbishop Cottrell and Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle.