ROME - Pope John Paul II has appointed Cardinal Thomas Winning, the leader of Scotland's 750,000 Roman Catholics, as his personal legate for celebrations marking the 1,400th anniversary of the death of St Columba. It will be the first time a resident Scottish cardinal has been asked by the Pope to represent him as an official legate.
The saint was born in Gargon, Co Donegal, in AD 521 and is credited with bringing Christianity to Scotland. The celebrations will be held on June 8th and 9th this year in the Dioceses of Raphoe and Derry.