DAUGHTERS OF MARY, HELP OF CHRISTIANS: PROCLAIM GOD'S SUPREMACY

VATICAN CITY, NOV 8, 2002 (VIS) - Today at noon the Pope received participants in the General Chapter of the Daughters of Mary, Help of Christians. The religious have been reflecting on the theme, "In the renewed Covenant, the commitment of an active citizen," according to the idea of their founders, Sts. John Bosco and Mary Domenic Mazzarello, "to form good Christians and upright citizens."

John Paul II told the Salesians that this idea required them to "bear witness to hope on so many frontiers of the modern world, knowing how to find with missionary audacity new ways of evangelization and human promotion, especially in the service of the younger generations."

"In order to carry out this arduous mission," he continued, "it is necessary above all to maintain constant communion with Jesus, contemplating incessantly His face in prayer and then serving Him, through your brothers, with all your energies. ... In a time marked by a worrying culture, empty and senseless, proclaim resoundingly the supremacy of God Who listens always to the cry of the oppressed and the afflicted."

The Holy Father underlined that sanctity was their "basic and urgent duty. It is the best contribution that you can make to the new evangelization, as well as the guarantee of an authentic evangelical service for those most in need."

After emphasizing the witness of heroic fidelity, confirmed by martyrdom, of some members of the religious family, the Pope said: "You must pursue walking in their wake, in environments which are sometimes marked by tension and fear, by opposing positions and divisions and by extremism and violence, that are capable of obscuring hope."

John Paul II concluded by affirming that "the vast horizons of evangelization and the urgent need to bear witness to the Gospel message to all, without distinctions, make up the field of your apostolate."

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POPE RECEIVES LEADERS OF JOHN PAUL II CULTURAL CENTER

VATICAN CITY, NOV 8, 2002 (VIS) - Pope John Paul this morning welcomed 90 administrators and supporters of the John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, D.C., who are in Rome on their annual visit, and he thanked them for supporting the Center's "efforts to present the Catholic tradition in its richness and cultural relevance."

"The mission of the Center, so close to my heart," he affirmed, "is inspired by the firm conviction that Jesus Christ, the Incarnate Word of God, is the center of human history and the key which unlocks the mystery of man and reveals his sublime calling. To build a world more worthy of humanity, it is urgent that Christ be proclaimed with joy and conviction as 'the way and the truth and the life'."

"The Cultural Center," the Pope concluded," is committed to showing how the Gospel responds to our deepest yearnings and highest aspirations as these find expression in the cultures which shape the future of our world."

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, NOV 8, 2002 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Katalin Szili, president of the Hungarian Parliament, and an entourage.
- Two prelates from the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Eastern Region II) on their "ad limina" visit:
- Archbishop Paulo Lopes de Faria of Diamantina.
- Archbishop Geraldo Majela de Castro, O.Praem, of Montes Claros.
- Archbishop Henryk Jozef Nowacki, apostolic nuncio in Slovakia.

This afternoon, he is scheduled to receive Archbishop Tarcisio Bertone, emeritus of Vercelli, Italy, secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

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PONTIFICAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES MEETS IN PLENARY SESSION

VATICAN CITY, NOV 8, 2002 (VIS) - The Pontifical Academy of Sciences is meeting in plenary session in the Pius IV House in Vatican City under the presidency of Professor Nicola Cabibbo on the theme "The Cultural Value of Science." The meeting began today and runs through Monday, November 11.

Academy members, who will have an audience with the Holy Father during their assembly, are scheduled to discuss a wide range of topics including: Cultural Aspects of the Theory of Molecular Evolution; The Different Paces of Development of Science and Culture: The Considerations of a Demographer; Science and Dreams; The Moral Substance of Science, and Surgery of the Soul.

Also on the agenda are presentations concerning Science as a Culture: A Critical Appreciation; The Impact of Neuroscience on Human Culture; The Art and Science of Medicine; God's Traces in the Laws of Nature, and Scientific Culture and the Ten Statements by John Paul II.

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HOLY SEE SPEAKS AT U.N. ON WORK BY UNRWA IN MIDEAST

VATICAN CITY, NOV 8, 2002 (VIS) - Archbishop Renato Martino, head of the Holy See Observer Delegation to the United Nations, addressed the Special Political and Decolonization Committee of the 57th Session of the General Assembly on the U.N. Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.

The archbishop, president-elect of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, expressed the delegation's "praise and appreciation for the work of the Agency." He noted that "many of the critical issues festering in the region served by UNRWA" include "settlements, curfews, closures, assassinations, suicide bombers as well as the effects upon the Palestinian people regarding employment, education and access to medical services."

The Holy See understands the current situation, he added, because "the Pontifical Mission for Palestine and its numerous collaborators worldwide report daily on the trials of those people served." The Mission "relies heavily on its collaborators, in order to provide financial support for its work among the Palestinian people, especially those living in refugee camps." Its annual budget is $10.7 million.

The nuncio quoted Pope John Paul II, who, at the August 11, 2002, Angelus remarked: "When will it be understood that the coexistence of the Israeli and Palestinian peoples cannot be brought about by arms? ... From 1967 till today, unspeakable sufferings have followed one upon another in a frightening manner. ... Faced with this humanitarian tragedy, which does not seem to show any signs of hope, no one can remain indifferent."

Archbishop Martino proposed "that the international community must assist the Palestinians and the Israelis to realize that the fundamental injustice causing the continuous spiral of retaliations must come to an end. Also, the findings of the Mitchell Report of May 6, 2001, clearly identified the occupation of Palestinian lands by Israel as the root cause of the sufferings which plague both Israelis and Palestinians. ... The massive application of violence has failed and failed miserably. It has increased the sufferings of both Israelis and Palestinians."

"It is the hope of my Delegation," he affirmed, "that any solution found for the multifaceted problems of the region will include the Holy City of Jerusalem" and involve "internationally guaranteed provisions to ensure the freedom of religion and conscience of its inhabitants, in order to safeguard the special character of the City and of the sites sacred to Jews, Christians and Muslims."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

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

- Appointed Bishop Charles Michael Jarrell of Houma-Thibodaux, U.S.A., as bishop of Lafayette (area 14,956, population 546,000, Catholics 353,861, priests 194, permanent deacons 74, religious 244), U.S.A. He will succeed Bishop Edward Joseph O'Donnnell whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted in accordance with Canon 401, para. 2, of the Code of Canon Law.

- Appointed Bishop Antonio Juan Baseotto, C.RR.S., of Anatuya, Argentina, as military ordinary for Argentina.
- Appointed the following prelates as members of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity: Cardinals Varkey Vithayathil, major archbishop of Ernakulam-Angamaly of the Syro-Malabars, India; Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, archbishop of Westminster, England; Karl Lehmann, bishop of Mainz, Germany; Crescenzio Sepe, prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples: Archbishops Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson of Cape Coast, Ghana; Guiseppe Chiaretti of Perugia-Citta della Pieve, Italy; Paul Nabil Sayah of Haifa and the Holy Land of the Maronites, Israel; Josaphat Louis Lebulu of Arusha, Tanzania; Stanislav Hocevar of Belgrade, Yugoslavia: Bishops Joao Oneres Marchiori of Lages, Brazil; Julio Cesar Teran Dutari, auxiliary of Quito, Ecuador; Kurt Koch of Basle, Switzerland; Cyprien Mbuka of Boma, Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The Holy Father appointed the following as consultants of the same pontifical council: Archbishop Antonio Maria Veglio, secretary of the Congregation for the Oriental Churches; Abbot Emiliano Fabbricatore, O.S.B.I., of St. Mary of Grottaferrata, Italy; Archimandrite Ignace Dick, vicar general (protosyncellus) of Alep of the Greek Melkites, Syria; Frs. Barthelemy Adoukonou, secretary general of the Episcopal Conference of Francophone West Africa, Ivory Coast; Gosbert Byamungu, professor of the Ecumenical University Institute of Bossey, Switzerland; William Henn, O.F.M. Cap., professor of the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome; Angelo Maffeis, professor of the Diocesan Seminary of Brescia, Italy; Gerhard Wicks, S.J., professor emeritus of the Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome: Professors Eva-Maria Faber of the "Theologische Hochschule" of Chur, Switzerland; Barbara Hallensleben of the Faculty of Theology at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland; Wolfgang Thonissen, director of the "Johan-Adam-Mohler Institute fur Okumenik" of Paderborn, Germany.

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