Cardinal returns home

Cormac Murphy O'Connor has been made a cardinal

The head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales, Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, has been welcomed back to his diocese after being created a cardinal by the Pope.

A service was held at Westminster Cathedral in London on Monday at which prayers were said for the Archbishop of Westminster.

The 68-year-old was one of 44 priests to be made a cardinal at a ceremony in St Peter's Square at the Vatican in Rome last Wednesday.

He took over as leader of the Catholic Church in England and Wales following the death of Cardinal Basil Hume in June 1999.

Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor told the congregation on Monday that the ceremony had been "an extremely moving experience".

Cardinal's role

He explained that a cardinal's role was to open the gates of the Church to all who wish to enter.

Cormac Murphy O'Connor: Back home after ceremony

As a cardinal, he will help choose a successor to Pope John Paul II.

He said: "The Church exists for the sake of the world, to point to Christ who is the only source of healing and hope for humanity."

Recalling the martyrs who have died for the Catholic faith in England and Wales over the centuries, he prayed that today's "disciples of Christ" might have the same courage in proclaiming the faith.

He said: "How hard it is to swim against the tide of indifferentism and all those forces, temptations in our society that take us away from the path of Christ.

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"Never, it seems to me, has there been more need for hope and for meaning as our society sets its sights on other gods and on roads that are not the roads to life."

Many roles

Prior to his appointment as Archbishop of Westminster last March, he had been the Bishop of Arundel and Brighton for 22 years.

Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor, who was born in Reading, began training for the priesthood in 1950 at the Venerable English College in Rome.

He took a philosophy and theology degree at the Gregorian University in Rome.

He was ordained a priest in Rome in 1956.

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He spent 15 years in the UK before returning to Italy in 1971 as Rector of the English College in Rome, responsible for training students for the priesthood.

Throughout his career, he has held many roles within the Roman Catholic Church, and was awarded a Doctorate in Divinity by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George Carey, in recognition of all his work for ecumenism.

He has been particularly interested in youth work, sacramental programmes and the development of small communities and has campaigned for Christian unity.

Under current church rules, he can serve as Archbishop of Westminster for eight years, before retirement at 75.

The cardinals are the Pope's closest advisers in Rome and around the world.