I first posted on this back in April 2006 Well, now I can officially welcome Tony Blair, the former prime minister, into the Roman Catholic Church. Mr Blair joins his wife Cherie and four children in the Roman Catholic faith.Following the special Mass at the archbishop's house in Westminster, attended by Mrs Blair and their children, Cardinal Murphy-O'Connor – the leading Roman Catholic in England and Wales – said the service was "very intimate, very prayerful". The Vatican has also welcomed Mr Blair's decision to become a Catholic. It comes as research suggests Catholic churchgoers now outnumber Anglicans in the UK for the first time in 500 years.
A Vatican spokesman said such an "authoritative personality" choosing to join the Catholic Church "could only give rise to joy and respect".
Last year, Mr Blair, who is now a Middle East peace envoy, said he had prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops into Iraq. Mr Blair had been taking instruction from a Catholic priest as a prelude to conversion.
A Vatican spokesman said such an "authoritative personality" choosing to join the Catholic Church "could only give rise to joy and respect". Last year, Mr Blair, who is now a Middle East peace envoy, said he had prayed to God when deciding whether or not to send UK troops into Iraq. It had been an open secret that Mr Blair had been taking instruction from a Catholic priest as a prelude to conversion.
Dr Rowan Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, wished the former prime minister well in his spiritual journey. Dr Williams said: "A great Catholic writer of the last century said that the only reason for moving from one Christian family to another was to deepen one's relationship with God."
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