Cardinal Murphy O’Connor, archbishop of Westminster, and Archbishop Peter Smith of Cardiff led a delegation of 12 Catholics on a visit to Buckingham Palace on 21 March to pay their respects to the Queen on her golden jubilee. In this period, declared the bishops in addressing the Queen, “our country and the Church have experienced a profound and sometimes turbulent change. For our Church the Second Vatican Council represented a turning point”, inaugurating a period of “opening to other faiths and a spirit of ecumenical dialogue in which we are still involved”. In its message, the Catholic community also expressed its appreciation for the efforts being made by the Queen for “the unity of the Church and for the values of truth, justice and tolerance”.
