POPE GIVES THANKS FOR PRAYERS FOR HIS PONTIFICATE

VATICAN CITY, OCT 16, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in the Paul VI Hall, the Pope received 6,000 Polish pilgrims and thanked them for their prayers "that accompany me during my pontificate." John Paul II today celebrates the 22nd anniversary of his election to the See of St. Peter.

Addressing the faithful present, many of whom came to participate in the Jubilee of Families, the Holy Father said they had come to Rome to pronounce their "'yes' to a noble and chaste love, to a life-giving love. You have come to show that, for you, the family and the life that is born, develops and finds shelter therein are fundamental values."

"I hope that each family, that all families of Poland and of the world, will discover ever more the greatness and sanctity of their vocation: being faithful custodians of 'beautiful love' and of each conceived life. I further hope that they will know how to defend in our time the precious heritage of faith and transmit it to coming generations."

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