GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF WORKING DIOCESAN PRIESTS

VATICAN CITY, JUL 6, 2002 (VIS) - This morning the Pope received participants in the twentieth General Assembly of the Brotherhood of Working Diocesan Priests of the Sacred Heart of Jesus which is taking place in Rome.

After recalling the theme of the assembly, "The pastoral vocation, Challenge of our identity today," John Paul II said: "You, Working Diocesan Priests, have always dedicated your greatest energies to the pastoral care of priestly, religious and apostolic vocations, conscious that they are the most effective universal means for the promotion of all other pastoral fields."

"I wish to urge you," he continued, "to reproduce the bravery, creativity and holiness of your founder, Blessed Manuel Domingo y Sol, adapting yourselves, when it is necessary, to new situations and needs in total docility to divine inspiration and ecclesiastical discernment."

The Holy Father exhorted the Working Diocesans to follow "with renewed courage" the work that the Church has entrusted them with, "striving to carry it out with the lifestyle and activity that characterize you: priestly brotherhood. Your lives and examples will certainly become a stimulus for so many who are looking for the radical pursuit of Christ."

The Pope concluded by encouraging those present to confront "the challenge of evangelization in this millennium with courage. Never say, 'we have tried it all; there is nothing else we can do.' On the contrary, always be willing to continue transforming your commitment and identity as 'workers' in concrete pastoral capacities that respond to the demands of your charisma and to the needs of the Church in the world today."

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