PAPAL MESSAGE FOR INTER-CONFESSIONAL MEETING IN MOSCOW

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - Pope John Paul's Message to Cardinal Edward Cassidy for the participants in the November 23-25 international and inter-confessional round table conference organized by the patriarchate of Moscow, was released today by the Vatican. Written in English, it is dated November 18.

Addressing "the Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant brothers and sisters who are taking part in the conference," the Pope writes: "I am greatly encouraged by this initiative of the Christian Inter-confessional Consultative Committee. ... Having as its aim the promotion of growing cooperation between Christians in the region, I pray that the conference will inspire all involved to bear an ever more convincing and effective witness to the Gospel of Our Lord Jesus Christ."

"The rediscovery of this brotherhood in the Lord," the Holy Father observed, "will make it possible for Christians to deepen their relations, intensify their cooperation, and strive towards the perfect unity in the faith which is expressed in full and visible ecclesial communion, and to which Christ the Lord calls his disciples."

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COMMUNIQUE ON VISIT OF EMIR OF BAHRAIN

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - Following is the text of the communique by Joaquin Navarro-Valls, Holy See Press Office director, which was published this morning regarding yesterday's visit to the Holy Father by Sheikh Hamad Bin Essa Al-Khalifa, emir of Bahrain:

"The meeting, which took place in an atmosphere of great cordiality, enabled the emir to highlight the importance of inter-religious dialogue and the many aspects that Christianity and Islam have in common.

"The emir expressed to the Holy Father his desire to establish diplomatic relations with the Holy See and invited the Pope to make an official visit to the emirate. The Holy Father expressed his thanks for this invitation, hoping that Divine Providence will one day allow him to make such a trip.

"Following the audience with the Holy Father, the emir of Bahrain met for discussions with Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano and Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, secretary for Relations with States."

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SIX SCHOLARS TO STUDY VATICAN ARCHIVES, WORLD WAR II

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - Cardinal Edward Cassidy, president of the Holy See's Commission for Religious Relations with the Jews, and Seymour D. Reich, chairman of the International Jewish Committee for Inter-religious Consultations (IJCIC), today announced the names of six scholars - three Catholic and three Jewish - who will comprise a joint team to review published Vatican archival material relating to World War II.

The bilateral decision to form such a study team was announced at the Vatican on October 19.

The three Catholic scholars are Dr. Eva Fleischner, professor emerita of Montclair State University in New Jersey; Rev. Gerald P. Fogarty, professor at the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Virginia and Rev. F. John Morley, a professor and Holocaust scholar at Seton Hall University in New Jersey.

The Jewish scholars are Dr. Michael R. Marrus, professor of history and dean of the School of Graduate Studies at the University of Toronto; Dr. Bernard Suchecky, research director at the Free University of Brussels, Belgium, and Robert S. Wistrich, professor of history and holder of the Neuenberger Chair in Jewish Studies at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

Today's communique announcing the composition of the team states that it will study the 11 volumes of Vatican archival material, published between 1965 and 1981, that relate to the Church's role during World War II. It adds that "the team is expected to raise relevant issues that its members feel have not been satisfactorily resolved by the documentation already available." Other specialists might be called in to assist.

If questions still remain, according to Cardinal Cassidy and Mr. Reich, "further clarification will be sought." Both acknowledged that the arrangement is unusual, if not unprecedented."

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BANGKOK MEETING FOCUSSES ON MEDIA CHALLENGES FOR THE CHURCH

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - The Pontifical Council for Social Communications has released a message from council president, Archbishop John P. Foley, to the participants in the meeting of the FABC-OSC (Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences-Office of Social Communications), which began yesterday in Bangkok, Thailand and ends November 27.

Fr. Patrick Casserly, an official of the pontifical council, is representing Archbishop Foley at the meeting, whose theme is "Megatrends Asia: Communication Challenges for the Church?" The message, dated November 19, focussed on three points of the recent Apostolic Exhortation "Ecclesia in Asia" which have to do with the media and social communications.

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Martti Ahtisaari, president of the Republic of Finland, accompanied by an entourage. - Five prelates from the Portuguese Episcopal Conference, on their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Maurilio Jorge Quintal de Gouveia of Evora.
- Archbishop Jorge Ferreira da Costa Ortiga of Braga, accompanied by his auxiliaries, Bishops Carlos Francisco Martins Pinheiro and Jacinto Tomas de Carvalho Botelho, and Archbishop Emeritus Eurico Dias Nogueira.
- Esteban Juan Caselli, ambassador of Argentina, accompanied by his wife, on a farewell visit.
- Rolf-Ernst Breuer, president of Deutsche Bank A.G.
- Jordan Sokolov, president of the Bulgarian parliament, and his wife.

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, NOV 23, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Bishop Joseph A. Galante of Beaumont, U.S.A., as coadjutor bishop of Dallas (area 19,475, population 2,815,732, Catholics 544,441, priests 206, permanent deacons 146, religious 249), U.S.A.

- Erected, at Saratov, Russia, the apostolic administration of Southern European Russia of the Latins, with territory taken from the apostolic administration of European Russia. He appointed Bishop Klemens Pickel, assistant to the apostolic administrator of European Russia, as apostolic administrator of the new ecclesial circumscription.

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