MAY NO IDEOLOGY PREVENT MEN OPENING THEIR HEARTS TO CHRIST

VATICAN CITY, DEC 2, 1999 (VIS) - John Paul II today received the Letters of Credence of the new Cuban Ambassador, Isidro Gomez Santos. In his talk, the Pope requested that Cuba may find, in the international community, "support and financial aid in order to be able to adequately meet current needs." This will be possible, he said, if Cuba promotes more possibilities for liberty and participation.

The Pope highlighted "the Cuban people's spirit of hospitality and their constant desire for liberty." He underlined that "it is essential to propagate these values, also protecting citizens from all forms of corruption and from certain social blights that especially afflict the young, as all these endanger social peace and stability."

"Furthermore," he continued, "material and moral poverty may be caused by, among other things, social injustice, limitations upon basic freedoms, depersonalization and the discouragement of individuals."

The Holy Father confirmed that "the Church in Cuba awaits even greater openness - by means of an enriching exchange of means and personnel - to the solidarity that the Universal Church has displayed, with a true sense of collaboration and while respecting the unique aspects of Cuban culture."

Referring to Church-State relations, the Pope said that rendering these more fluid would "surely contribute to harmony, progress and the good of everyone, with no distinctions whatsoever. On this question, it is essential to maintain a correct view of relations between the political community and the Church and to distinguish clearly between the actions that the faithful, either individually or in groups, carry out personally as citizens, in keeping with their Christian conscience, and the actions they perform in the name of the Church, in communion with their pastors."

John Paul II concluded his address by recalling the words he pronounced at the start of his pontificate: "Do not fear! Open ever wider the doors to Christ! ... Today, almost at the end of this century and of the millennium, I feel the need to add: may no-one, no institution, no ideology place obstacles in the way of all men opening themselves to Christ! This is my chief desire for all citizens of the beloved nation of Cuba."

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