POPE INAUGURATES "PAUL VI, A LIGHT FOR ART" EXHIBITION

VATICAN CITY, APR 23, 1999 (VIS) - John Paul II inaugurated at midday today the "Paul VI, A Light for Art" exhibition, organized by the Vatican Museums in the Charlemagne Wing adjacent to St. Peter's Square.

The initiative, said the Pontiff, "recalls my venerated predecessor, Servant of God Pope Paul VI, a little over 100 years after his birth, and on the 25th anniversary of the founding, at his request, of the museums' collection of modern religious art."

"This exhibition wishes to illustrate the great love which the unforgettable pontiff had for art, and the important place which that same art occupied in his petrine ministry."

The Pope thanked God for "the opportunity to add my voice to the witness of respect, esteem and trust of my venerated predecessor for artists from all over the world. I wished to dedicate a specific letter to them, which will be made public today."

"If it is true that artistic genius can create eminent works, even without taking faith into consideration, it is however a fact that, if one adds the intimate experience of communion with God to natural talent, the message which springs forth is even richer and deeper."

The Holy Father expressed the hope that the exhibition "might have a double objective: that of helping to better understand the value of art in the context of the new evangelization and to highlight the significant role of Pope Paul VI in the advancement of art, as an invaluable contribution to the spread of the Gospel."

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