CARDINAL CASSIDY TO ADDRESS MIDDLE EAST COUNCIL OF CHURCHES

VATICAN CITY, APR 28, 1999 (VIS) - Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity, is in Beirut, Lebanon, where he is participating in the April 27-30 Seventh General Assembly of the Middle East Council of Churches on the theme "Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, today and forever." Accompanied by staff member Fr. Johan Bonny, the cardinal will deliver a message from the Holy See.

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GENERAL AUDIENCE: DIALOGUE WITH JEWS

VATICAN CITY, APR 28, 1999 (VIS) - In today's Wednesday general audience held in St. Peter's Square, the Pope spoke about "dialogue with the Jews."

The Holy Father indicated that, despite difficulties over the years in relations with the Jews, there have also been "moments of peaceful and constructive dialogue."
The history of salvation "is illuminated by an immense multitude of saintly individuals whose lives bear testimony to their faith in the life to come. ... The courageous testimony of faith should characterize the collaboration between Christians and Jews in proclaiming and applying God's plan of salvation of the human race. If this plan is interpreted differently as regards the acceptance of Christ, then this naturally presupposes a decisive separation but it does not cancel the many elements that the two faiths still have in common."

The Holy Father went on to highlight that, "above all there remains the duty of collaboration in order to promote a human condition more in keeping with God's divine plan. ... In recognizing God's lordship over all of creation, and especially over the earth, all believers are called upon to translate their faith into a concrete obligation to protect the sanctity of human life in all its forms and to defend the dignity of all our brothers and sisters."

John Paul II indicated that Christians and Jews "find (in the Bible) elements that are indispensable in order to live and enrich their faith. This may be seen, for example, in the Liturgy."

The Holy Father concluded: "May the memory of the sad and tragic events of the past open the way both to a renewed sense of brotherhood, the result of God's grace, and commitment in order that the infectious seeds of anti-Judaism and anti-semitism may never again take root in the heart of man."

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HOLY FATHER'S MESSAGE TO BISHOPS OF ETHIOPIA AND ERITREA

VATICAN CITY, APR 28, 1999 (VIS) - Made public today was Pope John Paul's Message to the pastors of the Church in Ethiopia and Eritrea, which he presented to them yesterday.

"Prevented by the outbreak of hostilities between Ethiopia and Eritrea from easy access to one another in your own land," the Pope states in the English-language Message, "you have come to Rome in order to gather in one body as an episcopal conference." He recalls the "period of peace and friendship" between the countries following Eritrea's independence and states: "Thus the outbreak of hostilities last spring could not have been a cause of greater sorrow."

The Holy Father continues: "War brings tragedy and despair, reaping innocent victims as it destroys lives and homes, families and peoples. I repeat with urgency what I have said so many times in the past: every alternative to war must be pursued. God has blessed his children with an intelligence and creativity which can resolve tensions and conflicts, and which can succeed in building a society whose cornerstone is respect for the inalienable dignity of every human person."

John Paul II, stating that he knows "this conviction is shared by Eastern and Latin Rite Catholic faithful," adds that he also feels certain that "other Churches and ecclesial communities, ... your Muslim brothers and sisters, ... (and) followers of African traditional religions" feel likewise.

"It is your duty ... to build on these common sentiments and to encourage every initiative aimed at restoring that harmony and friendship which formerly marked the relations between your countries. The Catholic Church throughout the world supports you in this task."

"I pray for your countries and their leaders," the Pope writes in conclusion, "that the hearts of all will turn towards the paths of dialogue and peace. I renew my appeal to the international community to be of assistance in ways that fully respect your countries' independence and your peoples' dignity. A practical way to achieve this goal is the immediate implementation of the Framework of Peace proposed by the Organization of African Unity and already agreed to by the two governments."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, APR 28, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed:

- Fr. Austen Robin Crapp O.F.M., as bishop of Aitape (area 18,200, population 83,000, Catholics 57,000, priests 23, religious 73), Papua New Guinea. The bishop-elect was born in Sydney, Australia, in 1934, made his first religious vows in 1953, was ordained a priest in 1959, and since 1997 has been diocesan administrator of the diocese of Aitape.

- Fr. Henk Kronenberg S.M., as bishop of Bougainville (area 9,300, population 185,000, Catholics 155,000, priests 20, religious 53), Papua New Guinea. The bishop-elect was born in Enschede, the Netherlands, in 1934, made his first religious vows in 1958, was ordained a priest in 1961, and since 1995 has been general secretary of the of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Papua New Guinea and Solomon Islands.

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, APR 28, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father received a group of seven prelates from the Italian Episcopal Conference (Tuscany, second group) on their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Alessandro Plotti of Pisa.
- Archbishop Bruno Tommasi of Lucca.
- Bishop Eugenio Binini of Massa Carrara-Pontremoli.
- Bishop Vasco Giuseppe Bertelli of Volterra.
- Bishop Giovanni De Vivo of Pescia.
- Bishop Vincenzo Savio, S.D.B., auxiliary of Livorno.
- Dom Michelangelo Riccardo M. Tiribilli, O.S.B., abbot of Monte Oliveto Maggiore.

He received today Archbishop Joseph Henry Ganda of Freetown and Bo, Sierra Leone.

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