POPE APPEALS FOR URGENT AID TO PEOPLES OF AFGHANISTAN

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2001 (VIS) - Upon returning to the Vatican from his visit to a Roman parish this morning, Pope John Paul appeared at his study window, overlooking St. Peter's Square, to pray the Angelus with the pilgrims gathered in the square.

In reflections made before reciting the noon prayer, the Pope noted that "today Italy is celebrating the traditional day of thanksgiving for the fruits of the earth and of human labor." He said that "this year, the Italian bishops were inspired for the day's theme by the very words of the 'Our Father': 'Give us this day our daily bread'. In teaching this prayer to the Apostles, Christ invited them to trust in the bounty of God the Father Who enjoys giving every creature, and especially man, what is needed to live."

"As we give thanks to God for what the fields produced this year," the Holy Father observed, "we must not forget our brothers and sisters who, in various parts of the world, are deprived of essential goods such as food, water, a home, and health assistance. In a special way, during this moment of great international anxiety, I am thinking of the dear populations of Afghanistan for whom it is urgent that necessary aid arrive. This is a world emergency, which cannot allow us to forget that in other parts of the world conditions of serious shortages and compelling necessities persist."

The Pope concluded his Angelus appeal: "In the face of these situations, it is not enough to limit ourselves to extraordinary initiatives. The commitment for justice calls for an authentic change of lifestyle, above all in well-off societies, as well as a more equal governing of resources, in both rich and poor countries. The current weighty imbalances, in fact, feed conflicts and threaten in an irreversible way the earth, the air, and the water that God entrusted to mankind's care."

ANG;APPEAL AID AFGHANISTAN;...;...;VIS;20011112;Word: 320;