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The Enduring Legacy of John Paul II’s 1982 Visit to Britain

“For the first time in history,” said Pope St. John Paul II after he stepped off the airplane, “a Bishop of Rome sets foot on English soil.”

Joanna Bogle, February 16, 2022 – National Catholic Register

In 2022, the Church in Britain marks an important milestone in its long history: This May, it will be 40 years since the first visit of a pope to Britain.

And it almost didn’t happen.

There had been months of preparation, much debate and discussion in the media, elaborate rehearsals by choirs and cathedrals and Catholic organizations, the hiring of massive venues, including London’s famous Wembley Stadium — and then the Falklands war broke out, and the whole idea of a papal visit was called into question.

Most people in Britain knew little or nothing about the Falkland Islands, a small British colony in the South Atlantic. In April 1982, Argentinian forces invaded the Falklands, swept the small British garrison aside, and announced that the islands were now in Argentinian control.  Britain responded by sending a Royal Navy task force, and effectively the British were at war.

As part of the anniversary, I have been dipping into archives and discovering the inside story of the emergency meetings and messages that went back and forth between Britain and Rome as the crisis deepened and the papal visit was at risk of being abandoned. There must have been a great deal of prayer. Pope John Paul II, of course, led the prayers for peace, and British and Argentinian bishops were summoned to Rome, where he celebrated a Mass with them all. And then came the climax of the last-minute rescue operation to save the situation: He flew to Argentina for a swiftly arranged papal visit, before going on to Britain.

It was clear throughout that the Pope was not only neutral but that he was vigorously promoting peace: This was his consistent message, and it never wavered. On this basis, he was able to fly to London’s Gatwick Airport, where, as planned in detail over the previous months, a large crowd, drawn from Catholic parishes across Surrey and Sussex, had gathered to greet him. I was among that crowd. I remember the early-morning start and the excitement as we all arrived in a chartered bus, and then the wait at the airport, where the Duke of Norfolk — by long-established tradition Britain’s senior Catholic layman — greeted the Pope at the airport steps.

This was not, it was emphasized, an official visit. This was a pastoral visit of the Pope to Britain’s Catholics. So no formal representative of the queen was at the airport, and there were no government officials. There was music, and we sang a welcoming hymn. Then there were speeches — and the history was made. The Pope summed it up when he proclaimed, “For the first time in history, a Bishop of Rome sets foot on English soil.”

In its own way, the tragedy of the Falklands War — more than 800 men, British and Argentinian, would eventually lose their lives in the fighting — helped to create a situation where old antagonisms dating back to the Reformation in Britain seemed to dwindle away. The papal visit became a true opportunity for a message of peace and goodwill, with anti-Catholicism of the old sort somehow at variance with a general recognition of the needs of the modern era. The whole visit had, in any case, been planned with ecumenical goodwill in mind, and there were some powerful moments, notably at Canterbury Cathedral, where the Pope prayed with Anglicans at the site of the martyrdom of St. Thomas Becket.

And, yes, he did meet the queen — a courtesy visit, with tea at Buckingham Palace — with evident goodwill on both sides. Queen Elizabeth was wearing, I remember, a blue dress, and they were smiling and chatting as they emerged from the palace after tea. Postcards of the scene quickly became popular — I’ve still got mine.

The papal pilgrimage had the seven sacraments as its theme. At a packed Mass at Westminster Cathedral, the Pope baptized seven candidates of various ages, and then, after crossing the Thames at Lambeth Bridge, he arrived at St. George’s Cathedral, Southwark, which had been cleared of pews and filled with stretchers and wheelchairs bearing sick and disabled people from across Britain, and he administered the sacrament of the sick. And so it went on, across England and Wales and Scotland, with a penitential service, first Holy Communions, confirmations, ordinations and renewal of marriage vows. Vast crowds came, powerful moments of prayer experienced.

It was an unforgettable time. Looking back through the archives, something of the joy and excitement is still evident. So, too, are the changes since those days — the letters are typewritten (remember typewriters?) and there is just one reference to “a computer being installed” as a great innovation at one venue to store relevant information. Color photography relied entirely on film, paper and chemicals (some of the pictures have that curious greenish tinge that I remember well).  Fashions have, of course, changed: Ladies wore dresses, and there were even quite a lot of hats.

What did the papal visit achieve? A great deal. With its massive television coverage, it opened up an authentic vision of Catholic worship: from how Catholics pray to the centrality of the Eucharist. People saw what a baptism is and what is meant by the anointing of the sick. They saw the Pope as a bishop, a man in a white robe preaching about peace and the importance of family life and family prayer. Old notions of the Pope as a sinister foreign figure intent on imposing some sort of political rule were recognized as propaganda from a vanished era.

And that 1982 visit was followed, in the next century, by an official state visit by Pope Benedict XVI, where among much else, he addressed Parliament with a magnificent setting out of the respective roles of Church and state centered on a ringing call for true religious freedom. He led young people in a massive unforgettable night vigil of adoration of the Blessed Sacrament in London’s Hyde Park, and he beatified John Henry Newman in a glorious Mass at Cofton Park on the outskirts of Birmingham.

The year 2022 sees another major milestone in Britain’s story: the platinum jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. She has always been clear in her commitment to the Christian faith and spoken of it as central to her life and service.

So much has changed in the 70 years of her reign. While there has been progress in fields that include health and general prosperity, there is also much that is cause for great sadness: Britain is a country with too much violent crime, many unhappy young people, a drug crisis, a worrying suicide rate, and a collapse in a general understanding of many basic moral values, including the value of human life itself.

But the Christian message is still on offer and is the message that holds the hope of renewal; and in a country with a long history, and a tradition of marking anniversaries and jubilees, 2022 brings scope for missionary activity on a new scale. We must pray the opportunity is taken up. A reminder of that historic papal visit four decades ago is part of that.

John Paul’s 1982 visit to Britain an "extraordinary event"

By Vatican News

“Saint John Paul II’s visit [to Britain in 1982] was an extraordinary event in the life of the Catholic Church in the UK,” writes Sally Axworthy, the British Ambassador to the Holy See.

Axworthy notes that it was the first time a reigning pontiff had ever set foot on British soil, and that the visit “marked a historic moment in UK-Holy See relations”.

The Holy Father visited nine cities in England, Wales and Scotland over the course of six days. In addition to his meeting with Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace, highlights of the visit included addresses to young people in Cardiff and Edinburgh, and an open-air Mass in Glasgow that drew more than 300,000 participants.

“Ecumenism was central to his visit,” Axworthy says, noting John Paul’s visit to Canterbury Cathedral, where he met with the Archbishop of Canterbury, Robert Runcie.

“By attending the cathedral founded by St Augustine of Canterbury on his mission to England from Pope Gregory the Great in the sixth century, St John Paul II made a powerful statement of the churches' determination to walk forward together,” she writes. “This ecumenical dialogue has flourished ever since.”

John Paul’s 1982 visit to Britain paved the way for future “great moments” in the life of the Church in the UK, including Pope Benedict XVI’s visit in 2010 and the canonisation of St John Henry Newman in 2019. The “legacy” of that visit, says Axworthy, “was the strengthening and deepening of the relationship between the UK and the Holy See that is bearing fruit today”.

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30 years ago today The Pope visited Coventry

THIRTY years ago today 300,000 people stood in the blazing sunshine to welcome the Pope to Coventry.

• 10:30, 30 MAY 2012
• Updated 20:39, 25 APR 2013

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On Sunday May 30, 1982, Pope John Paul II was given a rapturous welcome as his helicopter arrived at Baginton Airport.

About 100,000 members of the crowd had camped out overnight hoping to catch a glimpse of the Catholic leader.

Others walked miles from car parks and bus stops to make sure they were part of this historic moment.

The Pope, 62 at the time, visited Coventry as part of a six-day visit to the UK.

To cater for his arrival a “temporary city” was built in the airport using 50 miles of scaffolding and five-and-a-half mile of chain link fencing.

There were smiles and tears of joy as His Holiness stepped from his helicopter to greet his adoring public and a giant television screen was mounted above the altar so the thousands could watch and hear him say Mass.

In a city still reeling from the effects of war a man of peace had come to share guidance and comfort to so many.

He went on to deliver a moving speech, describing Coventry as a “city devastated by war but rebuilt in hope”.

He added: “The ruins of the old cathedral and the building of the new are recognised throughout the world as a symbol of Christian peace and reconciliation.”

During the service those who had died aboard HMS Coventry just a few days earlier were also remembered.

The Pope’s visit was a very special moment for Anne Baxter, then ten and living in Wildcroft Road, Whoberley.

She was the first person to greet the Pope as he stepped from his helicopter.

She curtsied, handed him a posy and said: “This gift, Holy Father, if from the children of Coventry and the West Midlands of England. We wish you a very happy day with us.”

He thanked her for her gift and gave her a rosary and a medal as mementoes of the day.

The pupil at All Souls’ School said afterwards: “It was one of the best days of my life.”

Others had the honour of being confirmed by the Pope during the Mass. Oriano Di Mascio, of Mill Hill, Baginton, was among 26 people throughout the Birmingham diocese to be confirmed that day.

The pupil at St Joseph’s Convent, Kenilworth, described the experience as marvellous admitting shedding some tears after the confirmation.

A thousand children took part in a pageant to welcome the Pope, playing out the history of Christianity in music and dancing. They spent months preparing for the performance.

And across Coventry and Warwickshire people of all ages and occupations had prepared for months for the visit.

Pupils at Cardinal Wiseman School made a double contribution to the event with pupils at the girls’ school making an altar cloth while boys created the lectern from which the Pope read the Mass.

Margaret Jowitt made the altar cushion on which he rested the missal – the book from which the Mass is read.

The former music and religious education teacher at Bishop Wulstan High School, in Rugby, was also a member of the liturgical committee which organised the ceremony as well as being part of the 1,000 voice choir which sang at the momentous occasion.

Cash’s was also involved making commemorative souvenirs including woven badges and bookmarks.

The Pope also enjoyed a tradition Sunday lunch at the airport including a smoked salmon starter followed by roast beef, Yorkshire pudding and all trimmings. Dessert was an apple pie and fresh fruit salad followed by cheese and biscuits and coffee.

Then at 3.15pm it was time to say goodbye as the Pope was taken back into his helicopter to be whisked away to Liverpool.

The Telegraph also had a part to play. In an age before digital photography the efforts of fitness fanatic Rob Kennedy meant rolls of film could be brought by foot back to the city centre ready for a special edition of the paper on the Sunday – which was published by 1.20pm, before the Pope had left.

It was the first time since the outbreak of war 43 years earlier that the Telegraph was published on a Sunday.

The paper continued its coverage of the momentous occasion throughout the week, including an eight-page commemorative colour supplement.

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Canterbury Historical and Archaeological Society

Papal Visit (John Paul II)

On 29 May 1982 Pope John Paul II became the first reigning Pope ever to visit UK. The Canterbury city streets were lined with 25,000 well-wishers when he arrived by helicopter and travelled to the cathedral.  After a meeting with Dr Runcie, Archbishop of Canterbury, and the Prince of Wales, held at the deanery, the Pope attended a ceremony with Dr Runcie and Rev Dr Kenneth Greet (Methodist minister), renewing their baptismal vows together. The church leaders then greeted all the cardinals and bishops with a “kiss of peace” before lighting candles for Christian martyrs of different faiths.  Later, the Pope and Archbishop Runcie knelt in silent prayer at the spot where Thomas Becket  was murdered in 1170 (Image 1 – copyright uncertain).

What to see:

• the wall tablet in the Martyrdom  commemorating the Pope’s visit  (Image 2)
• the Papal insignia placed later in the cloisters – the letter M signifies the Virgin Mary (Image 3)

Sources:  see  standard  cathedral sources

Flashback: Pope John Paul visits Liverpool in May 1982

Ahead of Pope Benedict XVI’s visit to Britain next week, Dawn Collinson remembers Pope John Paul II’s trip to Liverpool in 1982

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YOUR visit takes place in a time of conflict. This is a very special moment for our people - in your company we set out together. We need to become better people to build a better world.”

With those words, Cardinal Basil Hume welcomed Pope John Paul II to Britain in the spring of 1982.

Ahead of him was a memorable visit to Liverpool on May 30, where a six-mile queue of young and old turned out to give him the warmest of welcomes.

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He arrived in the city at Speke Airport, met by a crowd of 150,000 faithful who had waited up to seven hours to see him.

The Papal helicopter – with the Pope and a group of cardinals including the current Pope, Benedict XVI, on board – arrived from Coventry, landing amidst a cheering flag-waving mass.

Liverpool’s Archbishop Derek Worlock ran across the grass with a party of bishops to meet the Holy Father, as a gust of wind blew off his skull cap.

He made his way to a specially designed podium where he addressed the crowd with a speech which focused heavily on unemployment.

“I know you are experiencing this very seriously in Liverpool,” he told them, “and it is one of the major problems facing society as a whole.

“The young, unable to find a job, feel cheated of their dreams, while those who have lost their jobs feel rejected and useless. This tragedy affects every aspect of life.”

A cavalcade through the city, along Long Lane, Brodie Avenue and Aigburth Hall Avenue, culminated on Hope Street, where Pope John Paul, waving from his trademark Popemobile, took in both cathedrals, meeting with Bishop David Sheppard and saying The Lord’s Prayer at the Anglican Cathedral.

The street name, said the Pope, struck him as particularly apt.

“It is an expression of the aspirations of the people who live here, an expression of their hope for the future, especially for the future of their children and their children’s children,” he added.

It was then on to a packed Metropolitan Cathedral where the Pope celebrated Pentecost Mass. Afterwards, flanked by Cardinal Hume and Archbishop Worlock on the cathedral piazza steps, he held his arms out to a sea of young people, announcing ‘Totus, tuus’ – all yours.

BBC Rome correspondent David Willey, a veteran of seven Papal visits, said he had seen nothing like the Liverpool welcome anywhere else during the Pope’s time in England.

“It is like a visit to a Catholic country,” he explained. “But more festive. This is what he likes.”

As he left Archbishop’s House on the Monday morning, having popped his head out of the bedroom window to bid those waiting in sleeping bags below a cheery ‘Good morning’, Pope John Paul was left in no doubt about how Liverpool felt.

He waved farewell with a chorus of Auld Lang Syne and loud shouts of ‘We want the Pope’ ringing in his ears.

DO YOU have memories or photographs of meeting the Pope in 1982? Email us at [email protected]

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Holy See: Five years since the Papal Visit to the United Kingdom

The British Ambassador to the Holy See marks the 5th anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI’s official visit to the UK

© Mazur/www.thepapalvisit.org.uk

On 16-19 September 2010, Pope Benedict XVI paid an historic visit to the UK. This was the first ever official Papal State Visit to the UK, as Pope John Paul II’s visit was a pastoral one.

To mark the 5th anniversary, the British Ambassador to the Holy See Nigel Baker said:

The State Visit to the UK by Pope Benedict XVI took our bilateral relationship to a new level. We have continued to build on that since, through Royal, ministerial and official visits and an intense bilateral engagement on the issues that matter - the Middle East, Ukraine, climate change, human rights, poverty and international development, human trafficking, geo-political conflict.

The British Embassy to the Holy See is accredited to the world’s most extensive soft power network. Arguably, Pope Francis is the only truly global figure in world affairs today. And only a Pope could have made a speech like that of Benedict XVI at Westminster Hall, the cradle of democracy, in which he called on “the world of secular rationality and the world of religious belief…to enter into profound and ongoing dialogue, for the good of civilization.

The Ambassador also reflected on the legacy of the Papal Visit:

Pope Francis understands implicitly the importance of the Holy See’s global dimension. Top level engagement, like the 2010 State Visit and The Queen’s visit to the Holy See in 2014, provide the canopy beneath which our bilateral and global relationship is flourishing.

The 2010 State Visit looked to the future; to how the UK and the Holy See might co-operate better to improve our planet, tackle poverty, and contribute to the common good. That objective remains as relevant and as necessary today as it did five years ago.

Follow @UKinHolySee #popeuk2010 to replay the visit

Pope Benedict XVI in the United Kingdom

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Who was the last Pope to visit Britain, who did he meet with and what events did he attend?

Pope Benedict XVI conducted a four-day tour of Britain during his state visit in 2010

• Published : 9:40, 26 Aug 2018
• Updated : 9:43, 26 Aug 2018

IT is a major part of a Pope's duties to visit dignitaries and followers in countries across the globe.

But when was the last time a Pontiff visited the UK — and who did he meet? Here is a rundown of Pope Benedict XVI's 2010 tour of Britain.

When was the most recent Papal visit to the UK?

Pope Benedict XVI visited the UK on a four-day tour from 16-19 September 2010.

It was the first Papal visit to Britain since 1982 when Pope John Paul II visited 16 UK cities.

But this was a pastoral rather than an official State visit.

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Who did Pope Benedict meet during the 2010 UK visit?

Pope Benedict's visit included meetings with the Queen and the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams.

He also met politicians such as new Prime Minister and Conservative Party leader David Cameron, the First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond, and leaders of the other main political parties.

He also conducted open air masses in Glasgow and Birmingham and a youth vigil in Hyde Park.

The main part of his stay Mass at Westminster Cathedral in London, attended by over 200,000 people.

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Controversy Accompanies Historic Papal Visit To U.K.

Sylvia Poggioli

Children arrive for a rehearsal at Glasgow's Bellahouston Park ahead of Thursday's visit by Pope Benedict XVI. The pope will celebrate Mass in the park following his visit to Edinburgh, where he will be met by Queen Elizabeth II. Jeff J. Mitchell/Getty Images hide caption

The first state visit by a pope to Britain comes at a low point in relations between Catholics and Anglicans and under the weight of the clerical sex abuse crisis.

Pope Benedict XVI arrives in Scotland on Thursday morning to spend four days in Britain -- the first visit by a pope in nearly 30 years and the first papal state visit since King Henry VIII broke with Rome in 1534 over a divorce.

The trip includes a meeting with Queen Elizabeth in Scotland, a speech in Westminster Hall, an ecumenical service with the archbishop of Canterbury and the beatification of a 19th century Anglican who converted to Catholicism.

Looming over the visit are 400 years of religious tensions and more contemporary divisions.

Particular Challenges For Benedict

Protests are being planned by gay activists, secularists, advocates of female ordination and militant atheists -- some of whom have called for Benedict’s arrest on charges of covering up sex abuse of minors by priests.

Pope Benedict XVI (right) prays during his weekly general audience Wednesday at the Vatican. Benedict takes his campaign to revive Christianity in an increasingly secular Europe to Britain on Thursday. He faces a daunting task in a nation largely at odds with his policies and where disgust over the church sex abuse scandal runs high. Alessandra Tarantino/AP hide caption

Pope Benedict XVI (right) prays during his weekly general audience Wednesday at the Vatican. Benedict takes his campaign to revive Christianity in an increasingly secular Europe to Britain on Thursday. He faces a daunting task in a nation largely at odds with his policies and where disgust over the church sex abuse scandal runs high.

Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi is unfazed.

“There have always been protests by some groups during papal visits,” he says. “There will be more groups on this trip -- such as atheists and anti-papists."

Lombardi adds, “It’s normal in a pluralistic society like the British one. We are not worried because we believe the media has overblown reality."

But a visit to such a pluralistic society is particularly challenging for a pope who has set as his mission the re-evangelization of Europe.

Robert Mickens, Vatican correspondent for the British Catholic weekly The Tablet, says the pope’s main goal is "to try to help make a space in society for religion, for faiths."

"It is very clear that [the pope] believes that the Catholic Church and Catholics within that church have been too lax in presenting the faith in reasoned, rational, argued terms that can stand up toe to toe in the arena of ideas," Mickens says.

Weekly church attendance among Britain’s 5 million Catholics has been dropping steadily, as it has elsewhere in Europe. In fact, many tickets to papal events -- which unusually carry a price tag -- have gone unsold.

Anglican-Catholic Relations A Key Issue

Just 11 months ago, the Vatican stunned the Church of England when -- without consulting the archbishop of Canterbury -- it offered to take in dissident Anglicans angered over their church’s consecration of female and homosexual bishops.

Anglican critics see it as part of a centuries-old campaign by Rome to annex the Anglican Church.

Vatican analyst Marco Politi says Catholic-Anglican relations are at their lowest point in recent history, as the Vatican tries to woo Anglican conservatives.

“All the issues of modernity which already in the Catholic Church the pope is fighting are just the reasons for which he is embracing this traditionalist part of the Anglicans,” Politi explains.

Benedict has the dubious precedent of having caused offense during several of his foreign travels: his remarks in Germany describing Islam as violent, which outraged Muslims; and his claim on his way to Africa that the use of condoms spreads AIDS.

Some Vatican watchers say Benedict’s decision to beatify Cardinal John Henry Newman, a priest in the Church of England who converted to Catholicism in the 19th century, could further strain relations with Anglicans.

The pope has described the decision as an act of ecumenism. But Politi points out that Benedict has always upheld the primacy of Catholicism -- “that the only real church is the Catholic Church, and that the Protestant churches for him are not real churches but only Christian communities.”

God's Somewhat Surprising 'Rottweiler'

Benedict will not receive the warm welcome given to his charismatic predecessor Pope John Paul II in 1982. Many of the British media have been openly hostile to the papal visit, which is costing British taxpayers some $18 million.

But The Tablet 's correspondent Mickens says Britons may be surprised when they see firsthand the man described as "God’s Rottweiler." “They will see someone who speaks with a lilting voice, soft-spoken, and he’ll look sweet and have white hair," Mickens says.

“But in the end," he adds, "the words will remain and he is going to have to choose his words carefully on this visit, words that are said with great kindness in the voice but really have a sharp bite to them on the page."

Related NPR Stories

The two-way, before state visit, pope benedict xvi aide analogizes u.k. to 'third world country'.

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Papal visit to UK parliament confirmed by Holy See

Vatican City, Jul 5, 2010 / 11:02 am

Pope Benedict XVI has accepted the invitation of Queen Elizabeth II and the episcopal conferences of the United Kingdom to visit in September, according to the spokesman of the Holy See. While the Pope's stop in the house of parliament has been confirmed, the most anticipated moment of the apostolic visit will take place on its final day.

The Holy See's spokesman, Fr. Federico Lombardi, officially announced the trip in a Monday statement from the press office. This confirms what Pope Benedict had already told the bishops of England and Wales and those of Scotland during their separate "ad Limina" visits to Rome last February.

Pope Benedict's visit will begin in Scotland and last from Sept.16-19. Upon his arrival in Edinburgh on Thursday, he will meet with the Queen at the Royal Palace of Holyrood House, then that evening he will go to Glasgow to celebrate an open-air Mass in Bellahouston Park.

Later he will travel to London by plane where, on Friday Sept. 17, he will begin the day in prayer with representatives of religious congregations. After separate meetings with Catholic school children and religious leaders, he will be joined by a delegation of Catholic bishops in a meeting with an Anglican delegation led by the Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams.

That afternoon, a much-anticipated encounter will be held in Westminster Hall, the United Kingdom's house of parliament, with members of British society, the Vatican statement confirmed. An ecumenical celebration will be also be held at the nearby Westminster Abbey.

Saturday Sept. 18, the Holy Father will celebrate Mass at Westminster Cathedral, visit a home for the elderly and preside over a prayer vigil in central London's Hyde Park.

On the final day of his visit to the U.K., Pope Benedict XVI will travel to Birmingham by helicopter, to preside over the centerpiece of his visit: the celebration for the beatification rite of Venerable Cardinal John Henry Newman in Cofton Park.

Prior to the Holy Father's departure, he will meet with the bishops of England, Scotland and Wales at Oscott College, the home of the seminary of the Archdiocese of Birmingham.

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Live updates: Mark Pope, UK basketball coaches are out recruiting again at Nike Peach Jam

Mark Pope and the Kentucky basketball coaching staff are back out recruiting.

An active spring and summer recruiting for Mark Pope and his new coaching staff continues this weekend as Kentucky gets a second look at prospects competing at Peach Jam, the season-ending Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) event that takes place at the Riverview Park Activities Center in North Augusta, South Carolina.

The Herald-Leader has been on location for the past several days at Peach Jam, tracking Kentucky prospects as they perform on one of the biggest stages in grassroots basketball and talking to them about their recruitments.

This year’s Peach Jam event spans two “evaluation periods,” which is when college coaches and recruiters can go off-campus to watch prospects play.

As such, Kentucky has already gotten a look at several top prospects — including top-ranked class of 2025 recruit AJ Dybantsa, top-ranked class of 2026 recruit Tyran Stokes and local prep basketball star Jasper Johnson — during last weekend’s Peach Jam recruiting window.

Now, the Wildcats’ coaching staff is back for more.

Keep track below of which Kentucky coaches are on hand at Peach Jam this weekend, and which games and players they’re watching.

This week’s recruiting period runs from 6 p.m. Friday to 3 p.m. Sunday. Peach Jam concludes Sunday.

Mark Pope arrives at Peach Jam to watch Boozer twins, Caleb Wilson

Pope began this live period in Atlanta, checking out the Adidas 3SSB All-American camp that was held at the Overtime Elite facility in Atlanta.

From there, he made his way to Indiana for a Puma-sponsored event that featured center Chris Cenac, who picked up a UK scholarship offer earlier this summer.

Now, Pope is on the move again and has settled at Peach Jam for one of the most anticipated games of the Saturday slate: Cameron Boozer, Cayden Boozer and Caleb Wilson are all in action at the Riverview Park Activities Center with their Nightrydas Elite squad.

One of the favorites to win Peach Jam. Nightrydas has lost only once this season with that trio of five-star prospects leading the way.

UK seems to have fallen in its standing with the Boozer twins following the Calipari to Pope coaching change, but UK remains a factor in Wilson’s recruitment.

All three players visited UK last year.

Jason Hart watches four-star combo guard and UK recruit Acaden Lewis

It was a certainty that at least one Kentucky coach was going to be courtside for Acaden Lewis’ game on Friday night at Peach Jam.

The lefty 6-foot-2 combo guard is ranked as the No. 47 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class by the 247Sports Composite and has UK among his top eight schools under consideration.

So it was no surprise when Hart pulled up a chair to watch Lewis and his Team Durant squad play Team Melo in a late Friday night game.

Kentucky hosted Lewis for an unofficial visit earlier this summer, and the Sidwell Friends School (Washington D.C.) guard is expected to take an official visit to UK later this year.

Lewis told the Herald-Leader at Peach Jam he is planning to sign with a school during the November signing period, and he specified that something he liked about Kentucky was the NBA expertise found on the coaching staff.

That’s a clear reference to Hart, a nine-year NBA veteran who was also previously the head coach of the NBA’s G League Ignite team.

Pope and Hart are the lead recruiters for Lewis at Kentucky.

Lewis had 15 points on Friday night in a Team Durant loss.

Kentucky assistant coach Jason Hart is on hand for Team Durant vs. Team Melo at the Nike EYBL Peach Jam. Watching 2025 4-star combo guard Acaden Lewis, who recently included UK among his top 8 schools ️ https://t.co/PFARGaEIJU pic.twitter.com/wHAikCLIRp — Cameron Drummond (@cdrummond97) July 19, 2024

Cody Fueger watches five-star guard Trey McKenney play

After Fueger and Hart watched the first EYBL game of Friday night’s recruiting period together, they went their separate ways inside the Riverview Park Activities Center.

Fueger crossed the hallway from one gym to another to check out a matchup between The Family and CP3, the EYBL program sponsored by NBA star Chris Paul .

The main attractions in this game were two class of 2025 prospects: Five-star shooting guard Trey McKenney and four-star combo guard Isaiah Denis.

McKenney (The Family) in particular has been a name to watch when it comes to UK recruiting. He had a double-double with 27 points and 12 rebounds in a 20-point blowout win for The Family.

UK previously watched McKenney at both the USA Basketball Men’s Under-18 National Team training camp in Colorado and at the FIBA Men’s Under-18 AmeriCup in Argentina earlier this summer.

Kentucky assistant coach Cody Fueger is now watching The Family vs. Team CP3 to close the second Friday of Peach Jam. Talent includes 5-star shooting guard Trey McKenney and 4-star combo guard Isaiah Denis, both class of 2025 players. pic.twitter.com/vKgi2PoTOw — Cameron Drummond (@cdrummond97) July 20, 2024

Kentucky basketball assistants Cody Fueger, Jason Hart are at Peach Jam

When Friday night’s evaluation period began, a pair of UK basketball coaches were in the gym at Peach Jam.

Kentucky assistant coaches Cody Fueger and Jason Hart sat side by side to catch a game together in the first viewing window: Strive For Greatness (SFG) against Boo Williams.

The talent on display in this matchup was headlined by Brayden Burries , a five-star class of 2025 combo guard from California .

Burries didn’t disappoint either: He put up an efficient 30 points on 10-for-16 shooting from the field in a two-point SFG win, with plenty of college coaches watching on.

Kentucky’s Cody Fueger and Jason Hart are here at Peach Jam. Watching Strive For Greatness vs. Boo Williams. Talent includes Brayden Burries, Bryce James (LeBron’s son), Micah Tucker and Kareem Stagg. pic.twitter.com/PdpNaS7g1G — Cameron Drummond (@cdrummond97) July 19, 2024

The No. 1 player in the 2026 class is from Louisville. Mark Pope is recruiting him to UK.

With college commitment looming, UK recruit Jasper Johnson looks to end AAU career on a high

Peach Jam preview: Which top prospects will Kentucky men’s basketball coaches be watching?

Mark Pope is looking for UK basketball recruits. Here’s what’s ‘super important’ to him.

Class of 2025 prospect Acaden Lewis has Kentucky in his top eight, plus more UK recruiting news

What’s next for the latest star recruit from Ky.? Jasper Johnson talks Mark Pope and more.

Five-star forward Tounde Yessoufou one of Mark Pope’s first recruiting targets for Kentucky

UK basketball recruited internationally under John Calipari. Mark Pope is doing the same.

‘It just feels different.’ Mark Pope talks about the experience of recruiting to Kentucky.

UK’s Pope won an NCAA title as a player. Could that be a recruiting advantage as a coach?

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The Papal Visit

Pope Benedict XVI in the UK

Scotland was the first stop on Pope Benedict XVI's historic Papal Visit to the United Kingdom. The cities of Edinburgh and Glasgow hosted the main events.

Also in Replay the Visit

Thursday, 16 September 2010

Pope Benedict XVI started the day by speaking to the media flying with him from Rome to Edinburgh on Thursday, 16 September 2010. The first stop on his historic Papal Visit to the United Kingdom was the Palace of Holyroodhouse where he was greeted by HRH Queen Elizabeth II at her official residence in Scotland. Having enjoyed the official State welcome, Benedict then traveled through Edinburgh in the Popemobile with thousands of passionate Scots lining the streets. Late afternoon and a move across to Glasgow saw the celebration of Mass with a crowd of over 70,000 in the city’s Bellahouston Park – a place where his successor John Paul II had celebrated Mass when he visited Scotland in 1982.

Pope Benedict XVI: In-Flight Interview

As is traditional at the start of Apostolic Journeys, Pope Benedict XVI held a mid-flight press conference with journalists accompanying him on his four-day visit to the United Kingdom. Here's a Vatican Media translation of the question and answer session.

• In-Flight Interview
• The Queen's Speech To Pope Benedict

"Your Holiness, your presence here today reminds us of our common Christian heritage, and of the Christian contribution to the encouragement of world peace, and to the economic and social development of the less prosperous countries of the world."

Pope Benedict XVI's Speech to The Queen at Holyroodhouse

"The monarchs of England and Scotland have been Christians from very early times and include outstanding saints like Edward the Confessor and Margaret of Scotland."

• Speech to The Queen
• Archbishop Conti's Welcome Message to the Pope

"Welcome, Holy Father, to this spot where your venerable predecessor John Paul II challenged us 'for the future to walk hand in hand'."

Pope Benedict's Homily at Bellahouston Park

"Let me encourage you to continue to pray and work with them in building a brighter future for Scotland based upon our common Christian heritage."

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Pope Benedict XVI flew to London from Scotland to start his visit to England.

London was the city hosting the memorable Day Three events of the Papal Visit.

The final day of the visit focused very much on the beatification of Cardinal Newman in Birmingham.

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Congo church distances itself from rebels after pol’s speech in parish

Uk catholic agency supports reinstate of aid to un palestinian agency.

Palestinians sort through trash at a landfill in Nuseirat refugee camp in Gaza on June 20, 2024. (Credit: Kareem Hana/AP.)

LEICESTER, United Kingdom – Britain’s leading Catholic international aid agency says the new government’s decision to renew funding for UNRWA, the leading United Nations aid agency for Palestine, is a “critical step towards supporting the education, health, and well-being of Palestinian refugees.”

UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced on Friday the decision was made to get aid as quickly as possible to those who need it in Gaza.

Israel began the war with the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas in the Gaza Strip after Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 Israelis and taking over 200 more as hostages.

The conflict has been violent, killing an estimated 38,000 Palestinians, and causing outrage among the international Islamic world.

Lammy said UK aid funding to Gaza is a “moral necessity in the face of such a catastrophe.”

The UK’s funding for UNRWA was paused by the previous government in light of allegations by Israel that 12 staff were involved in the October attack against Israel.

RELATED: Gaza conflict affects elections in the UK – and might be influential in the future

Lammy said he was “appalled by the allegations that UNRWA staff were involved” in the October 7 attacks.

“UNRWA has acted. Partners like Japan, the EU and Norway have now acted. This government will act too,” said, saying UNRWA is “absolutely central” to efforts to aid the civilians in Gaza.

Elizabeth Funnel, Country Rep for the Middle East at CAFOD – the international aid agency of the Catholic Bishops Conference of England and Wales – said the move by the government “is a critical step towards supporting the education, health, and well-being of Palestinian refugees who rely on UNRWA’s essential services.”

Catholic leaders in Europe have long called for a ceasefire in Gaza, and Pope Francis has been calling for an immediate ceasefire for months, saying, “Enough, please!”

Funnel said the “grave reality on the ground” in Gaza means the Catholic agency’s joy over the decision by the government to renew aid to UNRWA “is tempered,” noting that on Thursday CAFOD learned that one of their partners’ educational centers was hit by an Israeli airstrike, resulting in injuries to children.

“UNRWA plays a vital role in providing basic services to millions of people – not just in Gaza but across the Middle East,” she told Crux .

“There is no other organization that can match its reach and coverage. Not providing funding to UNRWA means that we are failing those who are in greatest need both now and in the future once post conflict rebuilding begins,” Funnel said.

“Furthermore, an independent review of UNRWA did not find evidence to substantiate the allegations that up to 12 UNRWA staff had participated in the October 7 atrocities and the UK is one of the last countries to reinstate funding,” she added.

CAFOD is now urging the UK government to” build upon this positive step” and use its diplomatic influence to call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, to suspend arms sales to Irael, to get a release of all hostages, and to get “full humanitarian access” to allow aid organizations to deliver “crucial support” to those in need.

Funnel said the call for a suspension of arms sales to Israel stemmed not only this week’s damage to the education center run by one of CAFOD’s partners in Gaza.

“It’s not the first time that our partners work has been impacted, just a few weeks ago, our partner who is delivering vital medical services in a so-called humanitarian zone was forced to evacuate. Civilians, healthcare workers and aid workers are not a target,” she told Crux .

Funnel noted many people have seen and been moved by the devastating images from Gaza over the last 9 months.

“People may have also learned more about the history of the conflict and are asking questions about how we can pursue a more peaceful future. Pope Francis has warned that in war there is no winner and we have seen many thousands of people in the UK attending protests to demand a ceasefire,” she told Crux .

“We hope that this energy and desire for a more peaceful future won’t wane but can be harnessed for a resolution which leads to the opportunity for all peoples in the region to flourish,” Funnel added.

She said CAFOD has seen a huge amount of interest in what’s happening in the region in the UK, “whether that’s through donations to our appeal or people coming to lobby their MPs with us at Parliament.”

“The Foreign Secretary was in the Middle East this week and acknowledged the suffering saying civilians in Gaza are trapped in hell on earth.’  We hope to see an ongoing engagement in UK politics with what’s happening and that the new Government will use all possible leverage to demand an immediate and permanent ceasefire,” Funnel told Crux .

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