POPE ASKS WORLD LEADERS TO PROTECT THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN

VATICAN CITY, MAY 8, 2002 (VIS) - Following today's general audience, Pope John Paul spoke of the special session of the General Assembly of the United Nations that is dedicated to children, and he appealed to leaders to renew their commitment to protect the rights of children:

"Today in New York, the special session on children of the General Assembly of the United Nations begins. This important meeting calls attention back to the scourges that continue to afflict childhood, that precious though vulnerable treasure of the human family. I am thinking of wars, of poverty, of exploitation and of abuses of all kinds, of which they are victims.

"During these days, while the representatives from countries of the whole world are gathered together to reflect on the condition of children, I invite everyone to pray for a positive result to their work. Furthermore, I trust that this occasion may give rise to a renewed commitment in support of children on the part of the international community, so that all social activity involving them may be inspired by an authentic promotion of the human family and by a full respect for their fundamental rights."

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GENERAL AUDIENCE: PSALM 50, A HYMN TO THE GOD OF MERCY

VATICAN CITY, MAY 8, 2002 (VIS) - In today's general audience, which, due to persistent rain, was held in the Paul VI Hall, the Holy Father spoke on Psalm 50, "the 'Miserere,' the most loved, sung and studied of the penitential Psalms, a hymn raised to the merciful God by the penitent sinner."

The Psalmist, the Pope explained, "clearly and unhesitatingly admits his sin. ... This experience involves both freedom and responsibility, it leads to an admission that a link was broken in making the choice to follow an alternative life with respect to the Divine Word."

John Paul II highlighted that sin "is not just a psychological or social matter, it is an event that damages the relationship with God, violating His law, refusing His project for history, overturning the scale of values, ... 'calling the good evil and the evil good.' More than an abuse against man, sin is first of all a betrayal of God."

"According to the Psalm," he went on, "evil lurks in the very depths of man and is inherent to his historical reality, it is for this reason that the request for the intervention of divine grace is so decisive. The power of God's love overcomes that of sin."

The Pope concluded by indicating that "the confession of guilt and the awareness of one's own misery do not lead to terror or the nightmare of judgement, but to the hope of purification, of liberation and of new creation."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, MAY 8, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Accepted the resignation from the pastoral care of the diocese of Umuarama, Brazil, presented by Bishop Jose Maria Maimone S.A.C., in accordance with Canon 401, para. 2 of the Code of Canon Law.

- Appointed Bishop Washington Cruz C.P., of Sao Luis de Montes Belos, Brazil, as metropolitan archbishop of Goiania (area 13,855, population 1,769,937, Catholics 1,274,300, priests 151, permanent deacons 1, religious 634), Brazil. The archbishop-elect was born in Itabuna, Brazil, in 1946, ordained a priest in 1971 and consecrated bishop in 1987. He succeeds Archbishop Antonio Ribeiro de Oliveira, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Bishop Federico Heimler S.D.B., coadjutor of Umuarama, Brazil, as bishop of Cruz Alta (area 16,325, population 396,259, Catholics 356,633, priests 50, permanent deacons 1, religious 174), Brazil. He succeeds Bishop Jacob Roberto Hilgert, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted upon, having reached the age limit.

- Appointed Fr. Jacinto Bergmann of the clergy of the archdiocese of Porto Alegre, Brazil, under-secretary for pastoral care of the national episcopal conference, as auxiliary of Pelotas (area 20,737, population 511,505, Catholics 295,061, priests 51, permanent deacons 3, religious 175), Brazil. The bishop-elect was born in Alto Feliz, Brazil, in 1951 and ordained a priest in 1976.

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STATEMENT FROM CARDINAL ETCHEGARAY IN JERUSALEM

VATICAN CITY, MAY 8, 2002 (VIS) - Following are the main points of the statement made today in Jerusalem by Cardinal Roger Etchegaray, Pope John Paul's special envoy to the Holy Land:

"The tragic and intolerable situation in which the Basilica of the Nativity finds itself for over a month is at the heart of everyone's concerns by reason of the symbolic character of this holy place, but also as a test of the common will of the leaders of the two peoples to reach a true peace throughout the Holy Land. Pope John Paul II, through his prayer, words and gestures, and through the diplomatic action of the Holy See, has never ceased sharing in the sufferings and the hopes of the population of Bethlehem. I had asked to go to this place and to pray in particular with the Franciscans who, in solidarity with the Greek-Orthodox and Armenian Churches, bear the spiritual responsibility of this sacred place: Despite great insistence, I was refused what is, properly speaking, a religious step.

"One must actually be there to measure the mistrust, disdain and vengeance that have accumulated on the steep path to peace. How many ruins to clear away, material, but especially moral! At this very hour, as the negotiations for Bethlehem seemed to be reaching the finish line, a further obstacle is preventing the happy denouement awaited by everyone. I am thinking in particular of those who are in the Basilica of the Nativity, or in the adjacent convent, and also of the inhabitants of Bethlehem and environs: For them, above all, there most be no further waiting."

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CARDINAL LOPEZ TRUJILLO: DEFEND, PROTECT CHILDREN'S RIGHTS

VATICAN CITY, MAY 8, 2002 (VIS) - Cardinal Alfonso Lopez Trujillo, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family, spoke yesterday morning in New York during the meeting of religious leaders that is part of the Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly on children.

After pointing to U.N. documents and declarations that state that "all human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights," the cardinal referred specifically to children's rights. He cited the Preamble of the Declaration on the Rights of the Children: "The child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth." Yet, he stated, "many delegations and governments refuse to recognize either this or the right to life or the truth that life does indeed begin at the moment of conception."

"It is bewildering," affirmed Cardinal Lopez Trujillo, "to think that many of those same delegations that refuse to recognize the human dignity of the unborn child claim to speak for the dignity of the oppressed, or those who suffer from discrimination. Such a selective, superficial or distorted recognition and understanding of human dignity is truly a denial of one of those social truths that should never be questioned or challenged."

The Holy See delegate noted that the Universal Declaration of Human Rights declares that "the family is the natural and fundamental unit of society and is entitled to protection by society and the State (Article 16)." Yet, he added, "it seems that in almost every debate in which the role of the family is discussed, this basic and recognized truth is challenged, and too many delegations attempt to change the understanding of the make-up and role of the family in society and in the life of the child."

"Children have the right to live in a family, to be protected and provided for by loving and caring parents or guardians," the cardinal declared. "At the same time there is a denial of parents' rights, there is a denial of their religious or social background as well as their heritage."

He reaffirmed that "everyone has the right to access to education, yet we see a continued gap between rich and poor, and between the percentages of boys and girls who are allowed to attend school, and complete a course of education. Everyone has the right to the highest attainable standard of health, ... yet too many people, far too many children, die each day because they do not have access to the most basic of medicines or health care. Everyone has the right to adequate shelter, yet too many children are homeless and too many people live in overcrowded homes in overcrowded cities."

Cardinal Lopez Trujillo observed that "these are not purely religious issues but rather social issues. Nevertheless, it is the obligation of religion ... to point out when and where the political and the secular arenas have strayed from their true path."

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