Speaking to the Scottish Bishops during their Ad Limina visit to Rome on 5th February 2010, Pope Benedict XVI urged the Bishops to present the Church’s vision as a message of hope.

The Holy Father said, “The Church offers the world a positive and inspiring vision of human life, the beauty of marriage and the joy of parenthood.  It is rooted in God’s infinite, transforming and ennobling love for all of us, opening our eyes to recognise and love his image in our neighbour.”

He continued: “All too often the Church’s doctrine is perceived as a series of prohibitions and retrograde positions, whereas the reality . . . is that is creative and life-giving, and it is directed towards the fullest possible realisation of the great potential for good and for happiness that God has implanted within every one of us.”