CARDINALS CALL FOR PEACE IN THE HOLY LAND

VATICAN CITY, MAY 24, 2001 (VIS) - The College of Cardinals today made public a Message for the closing of the sixth extraordinary consistory, held in the Vatican from May 21 to 23. The cardinals called for peace in the Holy Land and for an end to the wars and tensions in Africa.

The 155 cardinals who gathered in the consistory thanked the Lord, with the entire Church, for the fruits of the Holy Year of 2000. "We are convinced," they write, "that the great legacy which the Jubilee offers us ... is the renewing ... of our confession of faith in Jesus Christ."

Excerpts from the Message follow:

"The prayerful contemplation of Christ, while it leads to the communion of love with Him, nourishes the evangelizing mission of the Church."

"The condition, strength, and fruit of the evangelizing mission is communion, the unity of the disciples, for which Christ prayed.

"In a world heavily marked by injuries and conflicts and in a Church which bears the wounds of divisions, we more strongly feel the duty of cultivating the spirituality of communion: both within the Christian community and in continuing, with charity, truth, and faith, the ecumenical journey and interreligious dialogue, following the exemplary impetus which comes to us from the Holy Father.

"Communion urges the Church to act in solidarity with humanity, particularly in the present context of globalization with the growing numbers of poor, suffering, and those whose sacrosanct rights to life, health, culture, social participation, and religious freedom are violated.

"Towards the peoples who suffer from tensions and wars we renew our commitment to work for justice, solidarity, and peace. Our thoughts particularly go out to Africa, where many peoples are tried by ethnic conflicts, by continual poverty, and by serious illnesses. The solidarity of the entire Church goes out to Africa.

"Together with the Holy Father, we address a heartfelt call to all Christians that they may intensify their prayer for peace in the Holy Land, and we ask the leaders of nations to help the Israelis and Palestinians to live together peacefully. In the Land of Jesus the situation lately has been aggravated and too much blood has been shed. In union with the Holy Father, we entreat the parties involved to immediately reach a cease-fire and to resume dialogue on a level of equality and mutual respect."

"While we accompany the Holy Father with prayer in his upcoming pilgrimage to Ukraine, we desire to confirm our fraternal communion with all of the Eastern Churches."

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