ACTUALITÉ / NEWS
MP Pierre Lemieux, live from the Vatican
gregg.chamberlain@eap.on.ca Vatican City
about the history, role, and activities of the Holy See in global affairs. Vatican City has its own diplomatic corps, with papal nuncios, as the church ambassadors are called, posted around the world in countries like Canada. “What I have found in my work is that many of them (MPs and senators) don’t know about this,” Lemieux said. “As parliamentarians, we are concerned about human rights and religious freedoms all around the world.”
Collins and several other nominees from around the world were elevated to the rank of cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church. “There were over 200 Canadians who had flown over for the ceremony,” said Lemieux. The three-hour ceremony took place in St. Peter’s Basilica during which Pope Benedict XVI presented each new cardinal with his biretta, the ceremonial red headpiece for a cardinal, the ring signifying his rank, and the mandate for his new position within the church. As a member of the college, Cardinal Collins will now share the responsibility of selecting a future pope when the time comes. Following the ceremony, the Canadian
Pontifical College held a reception for Car- dinal Collins and the other Canadian cardinals. Lemieux’s presence as part of the Canadian delegation is a result of a personal invitation from Prime Minister Stephen Harper. During his time on Parliament Hill, Lemieux, a practising Catholic, was involved in founding the Canada-Holy See Friendship Group, which aims to educate MPs, senators and other federal officials
It may be one of the most prestigious andimportantassignmentsofhispolitical career. MP Pierre Lemieux reported from Vatican City over the Family Day long weekend on the elevation of Toronto ArchbishopThomasCollinstotheCollege of Cardinals. “We’ve just returned from the Consistory, the ceremony for the elevation of the newcardinals,” said Lemieux during a Saturday morning phone interview from VaticanCity. In Rome it was late afternoon. TheGlengarry-Prescott-RussellMPwas part of the federal delegation attending the weekend event during which Archbishop
Photos MP Lemieux Pierre Lemieux congratulates Cardinal Thomas Collins on his appointment (left) following the weekend elevation ceremony in St. Peter's Basilica in Vatican City (right).
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