Moderator and Pope discuss unity, peace and concern for the poor

The Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland, the Rt Rev Sally Foster-Fulton, met Pope Francis at the Vatican during a visit to Rome in November.

Mrs Foster-Fulton said she and Pope Francis discussed the escalation of violence across Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory and the war in Ukraine.

“We talked about how we both recognised ourselves in what is happening to the ordinary people there and how we need to recognise our common humanity more openly.

“We talked about how important it is that Christians speak and act together in unity in the world today.”

The Moderator and Pope Francis also discussed the St Margaret Declaration of friendship between the Church of Scotland and the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland. She said: “We talked about the intention of that and the energy behind ecumenical and interfaith work in Scotland,”.

“We talked about how important it was for us, as leaders in the Church, to be counter cultural and challenge some of the status quo around ideas about who comes first in the queue, particularly our Gospel bias to the poor.”

“We agreed on the importance of maintaining that prayerful and prophetic voice for peace in our world today and making sure that is something we do not waver from.”

Mrs Foster-Fulton presented the Pope with a print of “Throwaway People” by Michael McVeigh, a modern-day folk artist whose work depicts everyday life in Scotland. She said: “It is (Michael McVeigh’s) expression of the fragility of life and how easy it is to fall through the cracks.

“It is a print that I have remembered forever and I said to Pope Francis, who has dedicated his life to try and make sure that does not happen, that I wanted him to have that picture.

“He took it and turned it over and wrote something on the back in Italian so he would remember and was very, very taken by it.

“He asked me to give one of his gifts to Michael McVeigh and say thank you from him and I think that is pretty cool.”

The meeting was also attended by the Rev Tara Curlewis, new minister of St Andrew’s Church of Scotland in Rome and the Reformed Ecumenical Officer for the World Communion of Reformed Churches; Church of Scotland Mission Partner Fiona Kendall, who works with Mediterranean Hope, a refugee and migrant programme of the Federation of Protestant Churches in Italy; the Rev Ian Alexander, who leads on International Partnerships-Global Justice for the Church; and the Rev Stuart Fulton, the Moderator’s husband.