ROMANIA MUST DEVELOP THE "ART OF LIVING TOGETHER"

VATICAN CITY, MAY 7, 1999 (VIS) - At 6 this evening the Pope travelled to the presidential palace of Cotroceni to pay a courtesy visit to President Emil Costantinescu of the Republic of Romania, and to meet the various religious, civil and political authorities as well as members of the diplomatic corps.

The Pope warmly greeted His Beatitude Teoctist, patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, with these words: "Our meeting and the prayers we will share bear eloquent witness to evangelical brotherhood, ... and (they are) gestures that significantly characterize the path to unity between Christians."

John Paul II underlined the special role of the Churches, "which must consider each other not as rivals but as partners in the name of the common good. ... While respecting the autonomy of temporal circumstances, their spiritual mission calls them to be vigilant sentinels in the world, in order to recall the values which form the basis of social life, and to pinpoint, from a human and spiritual standpoint, the shortcomings in the areas of respect due each person, of each person's dignity and of basic freedoms, especially freedoms of religion and thought."

Thereafter, addressing members of the diplomatic corps, the Holy Father made clear his desire that "the international community intensify its assistance in favor of those nations which, emerging from the communist yoke, have to reorganize their economic and social life. These countries will thus become the architects of peace and prosperity for their citizens and increasingly responsible players in international life."

John Paul II spoke of the transition phase that Romania is experiencing, and "of the consequences and the scars that 40 years of atheistic communism have left in the flesh and the memory of the (Romanian) people." He also mentioned the repercussions of the events of 1989 which, in some cases, heightened the differences between people, and of the difficulties in the process of transition to democracy.

"But your people are rich in unexpected resources," he said, "and are called to develop the 'art of living together' ... in order to construct a common destiny. ... Moreover, it is important that a State which is anxious for coexistence and peace pay attention to all individuals, without exception, who live in its national territory. Indeed, a Nation has the obligation to do everything possible to affirm national unity, founded on equality between all its inhabitants, independent of their origin or religion, and to create a sense of welcome for outsiders."

"Certainly, territorial modifications which have led to populations from different ethnic and religious backgrounds being united have formed, especially in Transylvania, a complex socio-religious mosaic. ... If history cannot be forgotten, then it is in committing themselves to respect for minority rights and to dialogue, while still maintaining the desire for pardon and reconciliation, that citizens may today feel themselves to be partners and, even more, brothers."

The Holy Father concluded his speech by thanking Romania for the "welcome ... it gave with such generosity to my countrymen and to the Polish government during the Second World War."

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