POPE PREACHES TO YOUNG PEOPLE ON MOUNT OF THE BEATITUDES

VATICAN CITY, MAR 24, 2000 (VIS) - This morning Pope John Paul travelled by helicopter to Korazim, 135 kilometers north of Jerusalem, and by popemobile to the nearby Mount of the Beatitudes where he celebrated a Mass for an estimated 100,000 people, including 45,000 young people from Middle Eastern countries and from abroad.

On his way from the heliport to the site of the Mass, the Pope stopped to bless the Domus Galilaeae, a center for formation, study and retreats for seminarians and priests from around the world built by the Neocatechumenal Way on land offered to them by the Custody of the Holy Land.

The Mount of the Beatitudes is actually a hill rising 150 meters above and overlooking the Sea of Galilee. Five Franciscan sisters, Missionaries of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, live at the Shrine of the Mount of the Beatitudes.

During Mass, in his homily, the Holy Father extended greetings to the faithful of the Greek-Melkite, Latin, Maronite, Syrian, Armenian and Chaldean communities as well as to members of other Christian Churches and ecclesial communities, "our Muslim friends, members of the Jewish faith and the Druse community."

"We sit on this hill like the first disciples, and we listen to Jesus," the Pope told the young people. "In the stillness, we hear his gentle and urgent voice, as gentle as this land itself and as urgent as a call to choose between life and death.

"How many generations before us have been deeply moved by the Sermon on the Mount! How many young people down the centuries have gathered around Jesus to learn the words of eternal life, as you are gathered here today! How many young hearts have been inspired by the power of His personality and the compelling truth of His message! It is wonderful that you are here! ... This great gathering is like a rehearsal for the World Youth Day to be held in August in Rome!"

Then, referring to Mount Sinai, where God gave Moses the Ten Commandments, and to today's site of the Mount of the Beatitudes, John Paul II observed that "these two mountains ... offer us the roadmap of our Christian life and a summary of our responsibilities to God and neighbor. The Law and the Beatitudes together mark the path of the following of Christ and the royal road to spiritual maturity and freedom."

The Pope said that the Ten Commandments "may seem negative ... but in fact they are supremely positive." And the message of the Beatitudes "may seem strange" as "Jesus exalts those whom the world generally regards as weak" but these words present a challenge which demands a deep and abiding 'metanoia' of the spirit, a great change of heart."

"Not far from this very place," affirmed the Holy Father, "Jesus called His first disciples, as He calls you now. His call has always demanded a choice between the two voices competing for your hearts even now on this hill, the choice between good and evil, between life and death. ... To put your faith in Jesus means choosing to believe what He says, no matter how strange it may seem, and choosing to reject the claims of evil, no matter how sensible or attractive they may seem."

He underlined that "like the first disciples at the Sea of Galilee, you must leave your boats and nets behind, and that is never easy ' especially when you face an uncertain future and are tempted to lose faith in your Christian heritage. To be good Christians may seem beyond your strength in today's world. But Jesus does not stand by and leave you alone to face the challenge."

"Now, at the dawn of the Third Millennium," Pope John Paul concluded, "it is your turn to go out into the world to preach the message of the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes. ... Now it is your turn to be courageous apostles of the Kingdom!"

At the end of Mass the Holy Father greeted the young people present in Italian, French, German, Spanish, Polish, Hebrew and Arabic. He watched as several young people released white doves, and he then blessed several saplings which will be planted on the Mount of the Beatitudes.

He then added: "During these days, my thoughts turn with hope to the initiatives being taken by the Organization of African Unity to restore peace between Ethiopia and Eritrea. These efforts have now reached a very delicate stage. It is a matter of finding a path that will lead to the conditions necessary for the well-being and progress of the peoples of the entire region, already greatly affected by famine. Let us pray that this part of the world will work for a just solution."

Following Mass Pope John Paul went to the shrine of the Mount of the Beatitudes for lunch with the papal party.

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RELIGION MUST NOT BE AN EXCUSE FOR VIOLENCE

VATICAN CITY, MAR 23, 2000 (VIS) - This afternoon, the Holy Father travelled from the apostolic delegation to the Notre Dame of Jerusalem Center Pontifical Institute where, at 5:45 p.m. an interreligious meeting took place with Jewish, Christian and Muslim leaders and children from the three religions.

The French Augustinian Fathers of the Assumption began the construction of the 'Notre Dame de France' center in 1884, with the aim of assisting French pilgrims in the Holy Land. The building was completed in 1904. In 1948, during the first Arab-Israeli conflict, it was seriously damaged. On December 13, 1978 John Paul II made the center a Pontifical Institute, giving it its present name. Today, it is considered a holy and ecumenical place and constitutes a territorial prelature whose prelate is the apostolic delegate in Jerusalem and Palestine. The center has 144 rooms, 2 meeting halls and a 500-seat auditorium. A community of Carmelite Fathers attends to spiritual animation and the welcome of pilgrims.

In his speech, the Holy Father underlined that "for all of us Jerusalem, as the name indicates, is the 'City of Peace.' ... We must find in our respective religious traditions the wisdom and the superior motivation to ensure the triumph of mutual understanding and cordial respect."

"Love of our brothers and sisters involves an attitude of respect and compassion, gestures of solidarity, cooperation in service to the common good. Thus, concern for justice and peace does not lie outside the field of religion but is actually one of its essential elements."

John Paul II emphasized that "when we love our neighbor we are showing love for God, and when we hurt our neighbor we offend God. This means that religion is the enemy of exclusion and discrimination, of hatred and rivalry, of violence and conflict. Religion is not, and must not become, an excuse for violence, particularly when religious identity coincides with cultural and ethnic identity. Religion and peace go together! Religious belief and practice cannot be separated from the defence of the image of God in every human being."

"We must do all we can to turn awareness of past offenses and sins into a firm resolve to build a new future in which there will be nothing but respectful and fruitful cooperation between us."

The Pope affirmed that "The Catholic Church wishes to pursue a sincere and fruitful interreligious dialogue with the members of the Jewish faith and the followers of Islam. Such a dialogue is not an attempt to impose our views upon others. What it demands of all of us is that, holding to what we believe, we listen respectfully to one another, seek to discern all that is good and holy in each other's teachings and cooperate in supporting everything that favors mutual understanding and peace.
"The Jewish, Christian and Muslim children and young people present here are a sign of hope and an incentive for us."

The Holy Father concluded by stating that "if the various religious communities in the Holy City and in the Holy Land succeed in living and working together in friendship and harmony, this will be of enormous benefit not only to themselves but to the whole cause of peace in this region. Jerusalem will truly be a City of Peace for all peoples."

Following the meeting, the Pope returned to the apostolic delegation where he dined and spent the night.

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