ANGELUS: THANK YOU TO RELIGIOUS FOR THEIR HELP AT WYD

VATICAN CITY, JUL 27, 2002 (VIS) - John Paul II went this morning from Strawberry Island to the Mother House of the Sisters of St. Joseph in Toronto where he will stay till July 29th when he will leave for Guatemala City.

The complex where the Pope is staying is in the middle of a large park in north Toronto - F.K. Morrow Park, named after a philanthropist who gave the nuns the grounds of his property -and is comprised of the Mother House of the order, a residence and a rest home for elderly religious, a chapel and an infirmary.

The community was founded in France in 1651 by Fr. Joseph Medaille, S.J. In the 19th century, the bishop of Toronto asked the religious, as well as the monks of St. Basil, to go to Canada to take charge of an orphanage during the epidemic of typhus and cholera. In 1892, the Sisters of St. Joseph inaugurated the first of their hospitals in Canada which were followed by hospices for the elderly, schools and university residences.
The Pope arrived at the Mother House of the religious just before 11 a.m. where the Canadian political authorities were waiting for him: Prime Minister Jean Chretien, Governor general Adrienne Clarkson, Governor David Young of Ontario, and Mayor Mel Lastman of Toronto. The Holy Father spoke in private with each of them and after greeting the superior general and the council of the Congregation of the Sisters of St. Joseph, he went to the chapel to pray the Angelus with the community.

Before the Marian prayer, John Paul II thanked the nuns for their hospitality and emphasized that he knew how much they had worked "together with so many religious in preparation for World Youth Day and in welcoming young people from all over the world."
After recalling that the congregation just celebrated 150 years since its foundation, he said: "With you I bless the Lord who has done so many marvels through the dedication, sacrifice and humble and hidden service of so many religious of St. Joseph."

After praying the Angelus, the Pope ate lunch in the refectory of the convent with 120 bishops of the Canadian Episcopal Conference.

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