He finally went and did it

 

Photo by L’Osservatore Romano

It was generally well known that former British Prime Minister Tony Blair was about to convert to Catholicism. Finally, this weekend he entered the Church.

The ex-PM was received into the Church by the Archbishop of Westminster, Cardinal Cormac Murphy O’Connor.

It comes as research shows Catholic churchgoers now outnumber Anglicans for the first time since the Reformation in the UK.

I haven’t heard much in the media about that part of the story.

Blair was welcomed into a Church that was waiting for him. After all, just before he left office he made a personal, private visit to Pope Benedict in Rome.

Cardinal Murphy O’Connor, who is the head of Catholics in England and Wales, said he was “very glad” to welcome Mr Blair into the church.

“My prayers are with him, his wife and family at this joyful moment in their journey of faith together,” he said.

Chief Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said the Catholic church in Rome shared Cardinal Murphy-O’Connor’s “satisfaction”.

Now, about that growth of Catholicism in England…

A study by the organisation Christian Research has found Church of England services are no longer Britain’s most popular form of worship and have been overtaken by Catholic mass.

This is news that deserves bigger coverage.

Here’s  more on Mr. Blair’s first days as a Catholic.