URBI ET ORBI: THE LIGHT OF BETHLEHEM TRIUMPHS OVER DARKNESS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 25, 2000 (VIS) - In his traditional message, "urbi et orbi" (to the city and the world), John Paul II addressed thousands of faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square, condemning the "alarming signs of the 'culture of death,' which pose a serious threat for the future."

He continued: "Yet however dense the darkness may appear, our hope for the triumph of the Light which appeared on this Holy Night at Bethlehem is stronger still. So much good is being done, silently, by men and women who daily live their faith, their work, their dedication to their families and to the good of society."

The Holy Father affirmed that "in the Newborn Child, laid in the manger, we greet the 'new Adam' Who became for us 'a life-giving spirit.' ... From the manger, our gaze today takes in all humanity, called to receive the grace of the 'second Adam,' yet still heir to the sin of the 'first Adam'."

Is it not human sin, he asked, that continues "to mar the face of humanity? Children subjected to violence, humiliated and abandoned, women raped and exploited, young people, adults and the elderly marginalized, endless streams of exiles and refugees, violence and conflict in so many parts of the world.

"I am thinking with great concern of the Holy Land where violence continues to stain with blood the difficult path to peace. And what are we to say about countries - I am thinking particularly now of Indonesia - where our brothers and sisters in faith are undergoing a difficult time of trial and suffering? We cannot but recall today that shadows of death threaten people's lives at every stage of life, and are especially menacing at its earliest beginning and its natural end. The temptation is becoming ever stronger to take possession of death by anticipating its arrival, as though we were masters of our own lives or the lives of others."

He concluded by saying: "Of humanity as it approaches the new millennium, You, Lord Jesus, born for us at Bethlehem ask respect for every person, especially the small and the weak; You ask for an end to all forms of violence! To wars, oppression, and all attacks on life! O Christ, Whom we look on today in the arms of Mary, You are the reason for our hope!"
Following the message, the Pope gave Christmas greetings to the world in 59 languages.

MESS;URBI ET ORBI;...;...;VIS;20001228;Word: 410;