TELEGRAM FOR DEATHS CAUSED BY LANDSLIDE IN THE PHILIPPINES

VATICAN CITY, JUL 11, 2000 (VIS) - Following is the text of the telegram sent in the Holy Father's name by Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano to Cardinal Jaime Sin, archbishop of Manila, the Philippines, for the deaths caused by a landslide of a garbage fill on a shantytown in Payatas, near Quezon City, a suburb of Manila:

"The Holy Father was deeply saddened to learn of the death and destruction caused by the landslide at Payatas, and in the love of the Lord Jesus he asks you to convey his condolences to all who are suffering because of this tragedy. Conscious that the victims were among the poorest of the poor, His Holiness prays fervently that, like Lazarus who is poor no longer (Lk 16; 20-22), they will find eternal happiness in the embrace of God who 'will wipe every tear from their eyes'(Rev 21; 4), and he expresses the hope that the survivors will receive the prompt assistance and the support which their human dignity demands. Entrusting the people of Payatas to the loving care of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Holy Father imparts his apostolic blessing as a pledge of strength and peace in Jesus Christ, 'the firstborn from the dead'(Col 1; 18)."

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FRANCISCAN HERMITAGE INAUGURATED IN LITHUANIA

VATICAN CITY, JUL 11, 2000 (VIS) - Made public today was a letter written by Pope John Paul to Fr. Giacomo Bini, superior general of the Franciscan Friars Minor, for the July 8 inauguration of the Franciscan hermitage built on the Hill of Crosses in Siauliei, Lithuania. The letter is dated June 29.

The Pope wrote that "the building of this hermitage, in a place so charged with memories, reminds me of my prayerful visit on September 7, 1993 to the Hill of Crosses" and, ten days later, his pilgrimage to Verna. He said that be became more aware "of the great usefulness" of making "pilgrimages to Siauliei and Verna, places marked by the mystery of the Cross, to mediate with greater awareness on the passion, death and resurrection of the Lord and to open oneself to the grace of conversion."

Commenting on the "fraternal cooperation between the province of the Friars Minor in Lithuania and that in Tuscany," he recalled how, "in the times before communism, young Lithuanians, anxious to follow the Franciscan charism, were invited to Tuscany for their formation to the religious life."

"May the Crosses of the Hill of Siauliei," exhorted the Holy Father, "remain as witnesses to the tremendous trials suffered because of a dictatorial regime and may they constitute, at the same time, a sign of the greatness of soul of a people which knew how to draw from their own spiritual and cultural traditions the necessary strength to continue to hope in a better future. In the most difficult moments of the history of Lithuania, the Crosses of Siauliei have been a steady source of strength, an inner bulwark of faith in Christ and fidelity to the Church."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 11, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father accepted the resignation to the office of auxiliary of the apostolic vicariate of Bagui, the Philippines, presented by Bishop Sebastian Dalis, in conformity with Canons 411 and 401, para 1, of the Code of Canon Law.

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ARCHBISHOP FOLEY CELEBRATES JUBILEE FOR PRISONERS IN U.S.

VATICAN CITY, JUL 11, 2000 (VIS) - Archbishop John Foley, president of the Pontifical Council for Social Communications, was in the United States this past weekend where, on Sunday, July 9 he preached the homily at a Mass for the Jubilee of Prisoners at the State Correctional Institution in Graterford, Pennsylvania.

The archbishop, in his homily published yesterday afternoon, confessed to the inmates that he had "never before been inside a prison. I have visited places which have become museums. I have been in the slave labor camps of Auschwitz and Dachau and I have seen the gas chambers of Birkenau. ... I have failed, however, in not responding to the exhortation of Jesus to visit those who are in prison. For this I apologize to you." He thanked those who had invited him "to make amends for this sin of omission in my life and to visit with you today."

"Those in prison," he said, "look back with regret or remorse to the days when they were free and they experience their time now as a burden which never seems to pass. In this difficult situation, a strong experience of faith can greatly help in finding the inner balance which every human being needs. This is one reason why the Jubilee is so relevant to prison life: the experience of the Jubilee lived behind bars can open up unexpected human and spiritual vistas."

In closing, Archbishop Foley told the prisoners: "When I informed the Holy Father that I was coming to Graterford today, he sent me cards with his signature to be distributed to each one. ... Please believe me when I say you are in his thoughts and prayers."

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