Pope beatifies Cardinal Newman at Cofton Park

Pope Benedict XVI has beatified Cardinal John Henry Newman at an open-air Mass in Cofton Park, Longbridge, the final event of his four-day state visit to the United Kingdom.

Tens of thousands of pilgrims gathered in the park on the morning of 19 September for the Mass, the first beatification to take place in Britain.

Why Cofton Park

The Mass was originally planned for Coventry Airport, which could have held up to 250,000 people. The church moved it to the smaller Cofton Park, saying the park had a greater connection with Newman, who lived in Birmingham and used to walk in the area.

Pilgrims had to buy a Pilgrim Pack, costing £25, to attend, which included commemorative items and helped cover transport costs.

Newman and Birmingham

Newman was one of the most famous religious figures of the 19th century. A leading Anglican at Oxford, he became a Roman Catholic in 1845, a decision that caused a sensation, and was later made a cardinal by Pope Leo XIII.

He spent most of his life as a Catholic in Birmingham, where he founded the Birmingham Oratory, settling in Edgbaston, where he lived for nearly 40 years. He is buried at Rednal, on the edge of the Lickey Hills, not far from Cofton Park.

Beatification is the step before sainthood in the Catholic Church, and gives Newman the title Blessed John Henry Newman.

A visit to the Oratory

After the Mass, the Pope was due to visit the Birmingham Oratory, where Newman lived and worked, and to meet bishops at St Mary's College, Oscott, before flying back to Rome from Birmingham Airport.

A historic visit

The Pope's visit, which began in Scotland on 16 September, is the first state visit by a pope to Britain. Pope John Paul II made a pastoral visit in 1982, when around 350,000 people attended a Mass at Coventry Airport.

During his visit, Pope Benedict met the Queen in Edinburgh, addressed politicians and business leaders at Westminster Hall, and celebrated Mass in Glasgow and at Westminster Cathedral, as well as leading a vigil in Hyde Park.

A boost for the city

The councillor coordinating the visit said before the event that it could bring a £12.5 million boost to Birmingham, with the eyes of the world on the city. Major road closures and extra public transport were put in place to cope with the crowds, and many pilgrims arrived in the early hours to take their places.

Protests

The visit has not been without controversy, with protests in London over the church's handling of child abuse cases and its teaching on some social issues. In Birmingham, the day passed peacefully, with pilgrims singing and praying as they waited for the Pope to arrive.