Tributes paid to Lord Rees-Mogg at funeral

http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2013/jan/10/tributes-lord-rees-mogg-funeral

Version 0 of 1.

Lord Rees-Mogg, the former editor of the Times, was "one of the most influential men of his generation" whose strong Catholic faith inspired unwavering loyalty to his family, friends and colleagues, a congregation attending his funeral at Westminster Cathedral were told.

At a concelebrated requiem mass on Wednesday afternoon, Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor said Rees-Mogg's "wisdom and generosity" were admirable and his faith was so strong that "in other circumstances William would have made a good colleague".

"He was such a good man, especially to his family," he said, adding "I feel we have lost somebody very precious to our country".

Rees-Mogg, a pillar of the English establishment who died on 29 December aged 84, had campaigned openly for more Catholics in public life and put the church's values at the centre of his life.

The funeral was attended by about 1,000 people including politicians and national newspaper editors past and present. Attendees included education secretary Michael Gove, Lord Lawson, the former chancellor of the exchequer, BBC chairman Lord Patten, former Liberal leader Lord Steel, William Shawcross, biographer of Rupert Murdoch, Lady Astor, Sir Rocco Forte, and former Washington ambassador and BBC economics editor Peter Jay.

Robert Thomson, the chief executive to be Murdoch's new publishing company and a former editor of the Times, said afterwards: "He was a mentor to all successive editors of the Times. He was a wondrously subtle and witty writer."

Others who paid tribute on the steps of the cathedral included journalist Simon Jenkins, another former Times editor, who said Rees-Mogg had been an editor of the paper during the 1970s when "it was antediluvian and he got a lot of stick for it". Jenkins added: "He was a great lesson to all of in longevity; never stopping; keeping true to your word and not minding if you were wrong."

Jay said in public life Rees-Mogg was "a solemn and pompous person" but in reality he was "more like a naughty school boy than an archbishop" who was "mischievous and impish" and loved nothing better than to challenge authority.

Shawcross said: "He was a remarkably good man and with a marvellous mind and with extraordinary generosity … He was a wonderful editor of the Times in the late 70s when it was ghastly. He was calm; he produced a very fine paper and people liked working with him."

"In a world where politics and religion can appear to be drifting further apart and where journalism seems increasingly grubby, his was a strong Catholic voice," said the Rt Reverend Dom Aidan Bellenger, the abbot of Downside Abbey, who read the mass.

"William was a pioneer of opening up public life to Catholics, but his interest in the faith was in the broadest sense," said Bellinger.

"William's great gifts and energy made him undoubtedly one of the most influential men of his generation."

• To contact the MediaGuardian news desk email editor@mediaguardian.co.uk or phone 020 3353 3857. For all other inquiries please call the main Guardian switchboard on 020 3353 2000. If you are writing a comment for publication, please mark clearly "for publication".

• To get the latest media news to your desktop or mobile, follow MediaGuardian on Twitter and Facebook.