91热爆

Pope Francis this month completed his first year as leader of the world鈥檚 1.2 billion Roman Catholics.听听 Five weeks ago, he made his first cardinals - 19 of them from 15 countries - including Vincent Nichols, Archbishop of Westminster, head of the Catholic Church in England and Wales.

听

The immediate successor to Cardinals Basil Hume and Cormac Murphy-O鈥機onnor, Vincent Nichols was the youngest bishop in Britain more than 20 years ago when he served in the Westminster diocese before becoming Archbishop of Birmingham.

听

He took the top job five years ago in a church still reeling from abuse scandals, and against a background of declining attendance, rejection by many of the faithful of some of its traditional teachings, and in an age he sees as 鈥渁ggressively secularist鈥�.

听

He鈥檚 always been ready to offer a robust defence to that tradition on abortion, adoption, gay marriage, education鈥� how life should begin, how it should end, and how it should be lived in between.

听

But who is the man behind the image of a quiet, determined priest,听described as 鈥渁mbitious for God鈥�, who cheered from the Kop as a boy and remains an unashamed and unreconstructed Liverpool fan?听听 And how does he see the church grappling with the enormous issues which confront it?听

听

Before the world knew that a cardinal鈥檚 red hat would be placed on his head, Roy Jenkins spoke to him last autumn at his home in Archbishop鈥檚 House, just around the corner from Westminster Cathedral.

Related links: