| His Eminence Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien |
|
|---|---|
| Cardinal Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh | |
Cardinal O'Brien |
|
| Archdiocese | St Andrews and Edinburgh |
| Appointed | 30 May 1985 |
| Enthroned | 5 August 1985 |
| Predecessor | Gordon Gray |
| Other posts | Cardinal-Priest of Ss. Gioacchino ed Anna al Tuscolano (2003 - present) |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 3 April 1965 by Gordon Joseph Gray |
| Consecration | 5 August 1985 by Gordon Joseph Gray |
| Created Cardinal | 21 October 2003 |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien |
| Born | 17 March 1938 Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland |
| Denomination | Roman Catholic Church |
| Previous post | Apostolic Administrator of Argyll and The Isles, Scotland (1996 - 1999) |
| Coat of arms | |
Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien (born 17 March 1938) is a Scottish Cardinal and the Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh of the Roman Catholic Church. O'Brien is currently the only living Cardinal from Scotland.
Cardinal O'Brien is the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland[1][2] and heads its Conference of Bishops. By virtue of these roles he is sometimes referred to by non-Scots as the 'Primate of Scotland';[3] however, no such title has ever been officially bestowed upon him and there is no precedent in Scotland for the position of primate.
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O’Brien was born at Ballycastle in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, on 17 March 1938. After primary education in Ballycastle, he moved with his family to Scotland where his father was serving with the Royal Navy at Faslane, initially attending St Stephen’s Primary School, Dalmuir before continuing to secondary school at St Patrick’s High School, Dumbarton. His family then moved to Edinburgh, where he completed his secondary education at Holy Cross Academy, before studying at the University of Edinburgh where he gained a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry in 1959 (and later a Diploma of Education in 1966). His studies for the Priesthood were at St. Andrew’s College, Drygrange, Roxburghshire and he was ordained priest on 3 April 1965 by his predecessor, Cardinal Gordon Gray. Initially, serving as curate at Holy Cross, Edinburgh from 1965 until 1966, he completed his teacher training certificate at Moray House College of Education. For the next 5 years, from 1966 to 1971, he was employed by Fife County Council as a teacher of mathematics and science; he also served as chaplain to St Columba’s Secondary School, initially in Cowdenbeath and then in Dunfermline, while assisting at St Bride’s Parish, Cowdenbeath.
He was then moved to full time parish apostolate in St Patrick’s, Kilsyth from 1972 until 1975 and then St Mary’s, Bathgate from 1975 until 1978. He served as spiritual director to the students at St Andrew’s College, Drygrange from 1978 until 1980 then as Rector of St Mary’s College, the junior seminary at Blairs near Aberdeen, from 1980 until 1985.
| Styles of Keith Michael Patrick O'Brien |
|
|---|---|
| Reference style | His Eminence |
| Spoken style | Your Eminence |
| Informal style | Cardinal |
Cardinal O’Brien was nominated archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh on 30 May 1985 and was ordained to the episcopate by Cardinal Gray, then Archbishop Emeritus of St Andrews and Edinburgh, at St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh on 5 August 1985. Pope John Paul II created him Cardinal-Priest of Ss Joachim and Anne ad Tusculanum on 21 October 2003.
The Cardinal was made Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in 2005, appointed Grand Prior of the Scottish Lieutenancy of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem in 2001 and appointed Knight Grand Cross (KGCHS) of that order in 2003.
O'Brien was awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws from St Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, Canada in 2004; awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Divinity from the University of St Andrews in 2004 and awarded an Honorary Degree of Doctor of Divinity from the University of Edinburgh also in 2004.
He was Apostolic Administrator of the Diocese of Argyll and the Isles from 1996 until 1999 when Bishop Ian Murray took over the diocese.
O'Brien took part in the 2005 Papal Conclave which elected Pope Benedict XVI.
In anticipation of the 2010 visit of Pope Benedict to England and Scotland, O'Brien and Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, said that the crisis involving Seán Brady, Archbishop of Armagh, over the priest Brendan Smyth and other clerical abuse charges is one for the Irish Catholic Church and should not overshadow Pope Benedict’s visit. O’Brien and Vincent Nichols were asked whether the pope will respond to charges made against the church about clerical sex abuse during his four-day visit – the first papal visit to the United Kingdom since Pope John Paul II came in 1982.
“We do not know whether he will address that subject. We are quite a different country from Ireland, or France or wherever else. Basically, I do not know whether he will address that particular subject,” said Cardinal O’Brien, while Archbishop Nichols said English, Welsh and Scottish bishops have “robust” rules in place to protect children.[4]
After his creation as cardinal, O’Brien was appointed a member of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications and also a member of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People.
He is currently the President of the Bishops’ Conference of Scotland and fulfils various engagements outwith his own archdiocese at the request of other members of the Conference.
O'Brien has always shown a keen interest in the foreign missions, having visited the territory previously adopted by his own Archdiocese – Bauchi in northern Nigeria - on two occasions. He has also visited his priests who are on loan to dioceses in Central America, having visited El Salvador on three occasions and Chiapas in Mexico on two occasions, as well as going to Guatemala.
As a director of the Scottish Catholic International Aid Fund (SCIAF), the Cardinal has visited projects funded from Scotland in successive years: Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of the Congo in 2004, Ethiopia in 2005, and Darfur in Sudan in 2006. During the same year, O'Brien promoted various projects in the Diocese of Moshi in Tanzania which are supported by Holy Rood High School and the parish of St John in Portobello. He also visited India early in 2007, and has been invited to visit Beijing and Shanghai in China and Hanoi in Vietnam.
Sometimes known as the "Cardinal of Controversy" [5] O'Brien often speaks on issues close to his heart with frankness. In 1999, at the AartiEuropean Synod of Bishops, O'Brien answered whom he saw fit as the next Archbishop of Westminster, following the death of Cardinal Basil Hume O.S.B.. Usually bishops handle this type of questions very diplomatically, if at all. O'Brien bluntly named his candidate: Father Timothy Radcliffe, Master General of the Dominican Order (Black Friars). At this Synod Radcliffe had made an intervention to O'Brien's heart. There is a crisis of authority going in the Church, Radcliffe had said, but the answer cannot be more emphasis on authority. In presence of the Pope Radcliffe went on: the Church should not only speak about the poor, the divorced people, women who had had an abortion, homosexuals, but also take at heart their experiences, eat their bread, take what they have to offer. 'They'll blame us being associated with the wrong people but we have a good precedent'.[6]
In an interview with the University of St Andrews philosopher Professor John Haldane, published in the Catholic Herald in October 2006, O'Brien stated that he would be "happy" if Scots voted for independence, and predicted that independence is coming "before too long". He drew parallels with the independence of the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland: "it is difficult to argue that ecclesiastical independence is acceptable but political independence is not".[7]
Before being made a cardinal, O'Brien was regarded as relatively liberal on the issue of homosexuality, acknowledging the significant number of gay priests in the Roman Catholic Church. This even led to suggestions that he was being "disloyal" to church teaching.[8] Following elevation as cardinal, in 2005 O'Brien rebuked Bishop Joseph Devine who had suggested that homosexuals should not be allowed to teach in Catholic schools commenting, "I don’t have a problem with the personal life of a person as long as they are not flaunting their sexuality,".[9] However in May 2005 he told Scottish MSPs that homosexuals were "captives of sexual aberrations", comparing gays and lesbians to prisoners in Saughton jail.[10] In January 2006 he criticised Westminster MPs over the introduction of civil partnerships in the UK, and Holyrood MSPs over the liberalisation of divorce laws in Scotland,[11] and was reported as comparing gay unions to paedophilia during an intervention at the Scottish Interfaith Conference.[12] In July 2006 he intervened on proposals to change the law to ban discrimination by businesses and public bodies based on sexual orientation with regards to adoption, calling them “totalitarian”.[13] In 2011 he went on to blame "aggressive secularism" - in a reference to equality legislation preventing discrimination against homosexual people, he denounced what he claimed was the way Christians had been prevented from acting in accordance with their beliefs because they refuse to endorse such lifestyles.[14]
In May 2007 he urged Catholics to reject political candidates who support what he called the "social evil" of abortion, and said that such Catholic politicians should not expect to remain full members of the Church.[15]
During March 2008 O'Brien highlighted the issue of an Embryo Bill facing parliament, denouncing the government for a "monstrous attack on human rights" through its "evil" endorsement of "Frankenstein" experiments. Some scientists suggested that the Cardinal intentionally used inflammatory language to stir up opposition to the bill; however others argued he was sticking up for morals and forced the Government to allow MPs to vote freely on the issue. (Gordon Brown had originally imposed a three-line whip on Labour MPs, meaning they had to back the bill, regardless of personal convictions.)[16][17][18]
The Cardinal posted a video on YouTube in which he put forward his beliefs concerning the Human Embryology & Fertilisation Bill. The short video was also put on DVD and sent to every MP in parliament.[19] In the video O'Brien makes clear that he is not against medical research — in fact he supports research with adult Stem Cells — but he is opposed to the using of child embryos which will be destroyed after experimentation. He also voiced concerns over "human-animal hybrids" in the video.
In February 2010, the Secretary of State for Scotland, Jim Murphy, stated that faith was "at the very foundations of the Labour Party."[20] O'Brien responded to this claim by saying he "welcomed the sentiment" but pointed out that "a tangible example by the Government over the last decade that it acknowledged or endorsed religious values would also have been welcomed. Instead we have witnessed this Government undertake a systematic and unrelenting attack on family values."[21] The Archbishop went on to reveal that he had told Scottish Labour Leader, Iain Gray, "I hope he [Pope Benedict XVI] gives you hell for what has happened over the past 10 years'." This was a reference to the Pope's visit due to take place in September 2010.[22][23]
In March 2011 O'Brien called UK foreign policy "anti-Christian" for greatly increasing aid to Pakistan without requiring any commitment from the Pakistani government to religious freedom for Christians and other minorities. He made this statement in the wake of the assassination of Pakistani minister Shahbaz Bhatti, who had spoken out against the country's blasphemy law.[24]
He has called for a 310 year-old law banning Catholics from taking the throne to be repealed. Cardinal O'Brien said the Act of Settlement of 1701 was hampering efforts to curb sectarianism. Prime Minister David Cameron has said that "in principle" he supports reforming the law on royal succession to allow first-born female heirs to take the throne and remove the ban on Catholics becoming king or queen or marrying the heir to the throne.[25]
His comments came after First Minister Alex Salmond described sectarianism as a parasite in the game of football.
Cardinal O'Brien claimed the law amounted to sectarianism as much as chanting bigoted songs on the terraces.
O'Brien has long been suffering from heart problems and was fitted with a pacemaker after complaining of dizzy spells and fainting prior to Passion Sunday Mass in March 2008.[26]
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Gordon Gray |
Archbishop of St Andrews and Edinburgh 1985–Present |
Succeeded by Current Incumbent |
| Preceded by Hans Hermann Groër |
Cardinal Priest of Santi Gioacchino ed Anna al Tuscolano 2003–Present |
Succeeded by Current Incumbent |