TO LEGIONARIES: ANNOUNCE CHRIST IN TODAY'S WORLD

VATICAN CITY, JAN 4, 2001 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Square, the Pope received 12,000 members of the Congregation of the Legionaries of Christ and of the "Regnum Christi" Movement, who are celebrating their 60th anniversary. The groups were founded in Mexico on January 3, 1941 by Fr. Marcial Maciel.

"Your apostolic ideal," said the Pope, "is to announce Christ to today's world, in the different sectors of society. ... I encourage you - in keeping with your motto, "Your Kingdom come!" - never to lose your enthusiasm for working tirelessly in order that the Kingdom of love, grace, justice and peace may become a reality for individuals and society."

John Paul II stressed that faith in Jesus Christ brought "you to love the Church passionately" and to experience "a special spirit of ecclesial communion with Peter's Successor and the other pastors of local Churches. Continue as you have done until now, and even with renewed zeal, to spread the doctrine and Magisterium of the Church."

The Holy Father recalled that "commitment to the spirit of authentic evangelical charity" and "apostolic fervor" are two spiritual traits of their service in the Church. He went on: "You show this in all the many works you have undertaken, especially in education, evangelization, social communications, the spreading of the Church's social teaching, the cultural and human promotion of the disadvantaged and the training of diocesan priests."

"In a secularized world such as our own, built in large part on neglect of transcendent truths and values, the faith of many of our brothers and sisters is sorely tried. ... To you ... I repeat the words of St. Catherine of Siena which I proposed to the young people at World Youth Day: 'If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world ablaze!'."

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