Posted on 11/30/2003 7:29:36 AM PST by Eala
THE NEW leader of Scotlands Catholics has called for St Andrews Day to be made a national holiday.
Cardinal Keith OBrien also said he wanted to use his position "re-Christianise Scotland" and urged civic leaders to set up nativity scenes.
OBrien, the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh, was speaking at a Mass of Thanksgiving in St Marys Cathedral to mark his elevation to the College of Cardinals last month.
He told the congregation in Edinburgh, which included First Minister Jack McConnell and SNP leader John Swinney: "I ask you all to recognise the feast of our patron saint, St Andrew, on November 30 each year.
"Help would be given in this if our parliament recognised this day, St Andrews Day, as a national holiday. In this way, we bring to the fore the fact that as a country we have as our patron one of the great followers of Jesus Christ."
OBrien, who said he wanted to work closely with other Christian denominations, also stressed the importance of making Scots more aware of the countrys 1,600-year Christian heritage.
"I believe the time has come for a concerted effort to re-Christianise Scotland while also being aware of those of other faiths in our midst," he said.
Today OBrien was due to dedicate the nativity scene in Edinburghs Princes Street Gardens.
At the mass he called for such scenes to be erected across the country.
"Aware of the memorials which are the focus of prayer on Remembrance Sunday and aware of the ways in which considerable sums of money are spent on Christmas displays, I think it only appropriate there be a nativity scene at the centre of the celebrations of our communities," he said.
How nice not to have an ACLU...
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