CULTURE ALSO FORMS THE SPIRITUAL MAKE-UP OF THE CHURCH

VATICAN CITY, DEC 15, 2001 (VIS) - John Paul II today received representatives of the academic senate of the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University of Warsaw, Poland, who conferred upon him a doctorate "honoris causa."

The Pope affirmed that he received this title "with gratitude ... especially because this year, on the occasion of the hundredth anniversary of (Cardinal Wyszynski's) birth, the memory of this great pastor and statesman is particularly vivid."

The Holy Father noted that the Cardinal's mission as pastor "is usually associated with his work of preparing the Church in Poland to enter the new millennium of Christianity" and with "his firm position" as a statesman in the face of Communist atheism. "Thanks to this position, the Church, in difficult and trying conditions, succeeded in maintaining her due place in national life and in maintaining a just direction in her internal development."

"It is necessary to emphasize the fact, which seems to be rarely given attention, that Cardinal Wyszynski, both as pastor and as statesman, placed great emphasis on the role of culture - in its broadest sense - in forming the spiritual face of the Church and the nation. ... The cultural past, the heritage of creative effort in the thoughts and deeds of generations animated by the spirit of faith rooted in the Gospel, is the foundation of the identity of the Polish nation."

If in Cardinal Wyszynski's time it was necessary to reaffirm the importance of culture for the survival of the nation in the face of totalitarianism, "it seems that today," the Pope affirmed, "it is necessary to go further. We are witnessing the process of the unification of European States and of the globalization of numerous sectors of world life. This cannot be carried out without taking into consideration nations' spiritual and cultural traditions. Therefore, it is necessary to act in order for the process to take place with the positive and creative participation of individuals, and of those sectors responsible for culture and for the conservation and development of the heritage of the centuries."

"You are a symbol of the Europe which you must build together," said the Pope, citing the words he used last week in addressing university students in St. Peter's Basilica. He went on to invite members of the Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University to contribute "to forming the spiritual face not only of Poland but of all of Europe. It is a great task - it could even seem ambitious - but it is a mission to which all European scientific circles built upon Christian tradition are called."

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POPE'S 300TH ROMAN PARISH VISIT

VATICAN CITY, DEC 15, 2001 (VIS) - John Paul II sent a letter to Cardinal Camillo Ruini, his vicar general for the diocese of Rome, for his pastoral visit this Sunday, December 16, to the Roman parish of St. Maria Josefa of the Heart of Jesus. This will be the three hundredth parish community visited by the Holy Father during his pontificate.

The Pope recalled the death of Cardinal Ugo Poletti (Cardinal Ruini's predecessor) who accompanied him, he writes, "in the first part of this pilgrimage" and added that, "for me, visiting Roman parishes has always been a joyful commitment. Spending the morning or afternoon among the faithful, in different areas ... celebrating Mass ... greeting children, young people, pastoral counsellors; reawakening in each person the commitment to a new evangelization has been and still is of great importance to me in progressively drawing nearer to the human, social, and spiritual reality of the diocese - all the more for a pope 'come from a far-away country'. ... Everywhere I have announced the same Gospel and broken the same bread: Christ, Redeemer of man."

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ANGELUS: BLESSING OF FIGURINES OF BABY JESUS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 16, 2001 (VIS) - Upon his return from visiting the Roman parish of St. Maria Josefa of the Heart of Jesus, John Paul II appeared at the window of his study in order to pray the angelus with pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square.

After the angelus and in keeping with tradition, the Pope blessed figurines of the Infant Jesus that had been brought to the square by the children of Rome. "I thank you," said the Holy Father, "for your Christmas greetings, and I return them with all my heart, invoking peace and serenity for you and your families."

The Pope went on to offer greetings, in English, to representatives of the United Nations World Food Programme who have completed a global survey on the feeding of children at school. "Hunger," he said, "is a continuing tragedy for millions of people around the world, and the school feeding programme has proved to be a very effective way of fighting it and helping the world's poorest children. I pray that the international community will generously support your work, and upon your efforts I invoke Almighty God's blessings of strength and perseverance."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, DEC 15, 2001 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed:

- Msgr. Giovanni d'Aniello, nunciature counsellor in the service of the Holy See, as pontifical representative in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, elevating him at the same time to the dignity of archbishop. The archbishop-elect was born in Aversa, Italy, in 1955, and ordained to the priesthood in 1978.

- Bishop Robert William Muench of Covington, U.S.A., as bishop of Baton Rouge (area 14,583, population 809,998, Catholics 217,199, priests 141, permanent deacons 25, religious 175), U.S.A.

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ROMANIANS PRESENT CHRISTMAS TREE TO THE POPE

VATICAN CITY, DEC 17, 2001 (VIS) - This morning the Pope received in private audience Ion Iliescu, president of the Republic of Romania. He then went to the Clementine Hall where he met a group of Romanian pilgrims who had accompanied the president in order to present the Pope with the Christmas tree for St. Peter's Square.

The Pope stated that the presence of the Romanian delegation reminded him of the "days of intense activity" he had passed in Romania on the occasion "of my unforgettable apostolic visit of two years ago. With deep emotion, I recall the meeting with the Patriarch Teoctist and the Romanian Orthodox Church; I also affectionately recall the venerable Cardinal Alexandru Todea and the fervent Catholic community."

"I would like to highlight," he continued, "Romania's active presence, in the year that is now drawing to a close, in the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Among the decisions taken with your country's collaboration, I would like to mention those relative to the subject of spiritual values and religious liberty. May God continue to bless the efforts of the Romanian nation, that it may not cease to carry out faithfully its role as 'bridge' between the different cultural and religious traditions of Europe, thus favoring peace and understanding among men."

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