The pope’s visit to Britain will not be affected by the disclosure of a foreign office document apparently mocking the Catholic Church, the Vatican said today.
The foreign office has apologised for the memo, written by a junior diplomat, which suggested that Pope Benedict XVI should open an abortion clinic,
bless a gay marriage and launch a range of Benedict-branded condoms when he visits Britain later this year.
Vatican spokesman Fr Federico Lombardi has noted a Foreign Office apology and said the paper will have “absolutely” no impact on the pope’s visit in September, an official confirmed.
The memo also suggested Benedict XVI could show his hard line on the sensitive issue of child abuse allegations against Roman Catholic priests by “sacking dodgy bishops” and launching a helpline for abused children.
The foreign office issued an apology for the memo, describing the suggestions as “ill-judged, naive and disrespectful”.
The ideas were included in a paper titled “The ideal visit would see...” which was distributed to officials in Whitehall and Downing Street preparing for the historic visit. A cover note said the paper stemmed from a brainstorming session and accepted that some of the ideas were “far-fetched”.
Many of the proposals appeared to mock the teachings of the Roman Catholic Church on issues such as abortion, homosexuality and contraception and the difficulties it is experiencing over cases of child abuse.
The Foreign Office apologised for what it described as a “foolish” document and said the individual responsible had been transferred to other duties.
Foreign secretary David Miliband was said to have been “appalled” to hear of the paper, and Britain’s ambassador to the Vatican, Francis Campbell, met senior officials of the Holy See to express the Government’s regret.
The foreign office confirmed that the memo was drawn up by a small group of three or four junior staff in a team working on the papal visit. The document was withdrawn after it was circulated to more senior staff.
The memo also suggested that the pope could apologise for the Spanish Armada or sing a song with the Queen for charity.
The paper was attached as one of three “background documents” to a memo dated March 5th inviting officials to attend a meeting to discuss themes for the papal visit. An investigation began after some recipients of the memo objected to the disrespectful tone of the paper.
A spokesman for the Catholic Church in England and Wales said: “It doesn’t reflect the discussions we have had with Government officials in our collaborative planning of the papal visit. This has no place in the serious planning for this important visit.”
PA