PAPAL MESSAGE FOR 11TH WORLD DAY OF THE SICK

VATICAN CITY, FEB 7, 2003 (VIS) - Pope John Paul's Message for the 11th World Day of the Sick, to be held February 11, feast of Our Lady of Lourdes, at the National Shrine of the Basilica of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C., was published today. Dated February 2, it was made available in English, French, Italian, Spanish, German and Portuguese.

Following are excerpts from that Message:

"Recognizing the presence of the Lord in our suffering brothers and sisters, the Church strives to bring them the good news of the Gospel and to offer them authentic signs of love."

"Urgent questions about suffering and death, dramatically present in the heart of every person despite the continual attempts by a secular mentality to remove them or ignore them, await satisfactory answers. Especially in the presence of tragic human experiences, the Christian is called to bear witness to the consoling truth of the Risen Lord, who takes upon himself the wounds and ills of humanity, including death itself, and transforms them into occasions of grace and life."

"On the continents of North and South America, as elsewhere in the world, 'a model of society appears to be emerging in which the powerful predominate, setting aside and even eliminating the powerless: I am thinking here of unborn children, helpless victims of abortion; the elderly and incurable ill, subjected at times to euthanasia; and the many other people relegated to the margins of society by consumerism and materialism. Nor can I fail to mention the unnecessary recourse to the death penalty. ... This model of society bears the stamp of the culture of death, and is therefore in opposition to the Gospel message'. Faced with this worrying fact, how can we fail to include the defense of the culture of life among our pastoral priorities? Catholics working in the field of health care have the urgent task of doing all they can to defend life when it is most seriously threatened and to act with a conscience correctly formed according to the teaching of the Church."

"In order to make this witness of love practical, those involved in the pastoral care of the sick must act in full communion among themselves and with their Bishops. This is of particular importance in Catholic hospitals, which in responding to modern needs are called upon to reflect ever more clearly in their policies the values of the Gospel, as the Magisterium's social and moral guidelines insist."

"Catholic hospitals should be centers of life and hope which promote ' together with chaplaincies ' ethics committees, training programmes for lay health workers, personal and compassionate care of the sick, attention to the needs of their families and a particular sensitivity to the poor and the marginalized. Professional work should be done in a genuine witness to charity, bearing in mind that life is a gift from God, and man merely its steward and guardian."

"Indeed, it remains a fundamental precept that life is to protected and defended, from its conception to its natural end."

"The Church, which is open to genuine scientific and technological progress, values the effort and sacrifice of those who with dedication and professionalism help to improve the quality of the service rendered to the sick, respecting their inviolable dignity. Every therapeutic procedure, all experimentation and every transplant must take into account this fundamental truth. Thus it is never licit to kill one human being in order to save another. And while palliative treatment in the final stage of life can be encouraged, avoiding a 'treatment at all costs' mentality, it will never be permissible to resort to actions or omissions which by their nature or in the intention of the person acting are designed to bring about death."

"My earnest hope for this Eleventh World Day of the Sick is that it will inspire in Dioceses and parishes a renewed commitment to the pastoral care of the sick. ... Proper attention should be given to the pastoral aspect of health care in the formation of priests and religious."

"Dear chaplains, religious, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, technicians, administrative personnel, social assistants and volunteers. Be aware of your identity and learn to recognize in those who suffer the Face of the sorrowful and glorious Lord. Be ready to bring help and hope especially to those afflicted with new diseases, such as AIDS, and with older diseases, such as tuberculosis, malaria and leprosy."

"Dear Brothers and Sisters who suffer in body or spirit, to you I express my heartfelt hope that you will learn to recognize and welcome the Lord who calls you to be witnesses to the Gospel of suffering, by looking with trust and love upon the Face of Christ Crucified and by uniting your sufferings to his."

MESS;WORLD DAY SICK;...;...;VIS;20030207;Word: 800;

JOHN PAUL II WELCOMES 37 PRELATES FROM BRAZIL

VATICAN CITY, FEB 7, 2003 (VIS) - This morning the Pope received 37 prelates of the National Conference of the Bishops of Brazil, as they near conclusion of their January 27-February 8 "ad limina visit." Among those he greeted were Bishop Jayme Henrique Chemello, president of the conference and Cardinal Jose Freire Falcao, archbishop of Brasilia.

The Pope's talk to the Brazilian prelates focussed on their ministry, in particular their triple "munus" of governing, teaching and sanctifying. Noting the immense regions that comprise their dioceses, he said he knew of the difficulties they faced in this triple task for the very reason of geographic size. "Being a bishop is not easy," he added, as there are obligations, commitments and difficulties that "in sometimes unforseen circumstances, constitute enormous and complex obstacles and, at times, humanly insurmountable ones."

He said that "without denying the specific diversity of each diocese, there are situations and problems that demand a consonant pastoral action to exercise, in unity and charity, 'certain pastoral functions ... in view of promoting that greater good which the Church offers humankind, especially through forms and programs of the apostolate which are fittingly adapted to the circumstances of the time and place."

"Through sacramental consecration and hierarchical communion with the Head and its members," the Pope said, referring to can. 375 of the Code of Canon Law, "the Bishop is a member of the Episcopal College and thus participates in the solicitude for all Churches, in being a teacher of the doctrine, a priest of sacred worship and a minister of government. His principal task is, in effect, to govern the diocese entrusted to him."

The Pope remarked that notwithstanding a bishop's specific functions in his diocese, there must be, among bishops, and among episcopal conferences, effective and concrete unity. Even when great distances cause difficulties for meetings, a pastor must do all in his power "to effectively fulfill his mission" so that he does not fail, for example, to be close to his priests or to assist in their formation.

John Paul II decried "an excess of organisms or meetings, obliging bishops to frequently be away from their own particular Churches, contrary to the 'law of residence' (Can 395), with the negative consequence of not accompanying their priests or other pastoral aspects as could be the case with the penetration of sects." He urged the prelates to avoid "the excessive multiplication of organisms or the bureaucratization of subsidiary organisms and commissions that continue actively in the period between plenary meetings: these organs 'exist to help the bishop, and not to take his place'."

The Pope lauded the bishops' conference for the recent revision of its Statutes and said he hoped this would "stimulate a solid communion among bishops" and "promote an ever greater participation by them in the Conference." He then pointed out that, because of its vastness, Brazil had numerous dioceses, prelatures, eparchies, an exarchate, territorial abbeys, a military ordinariate, a personal apostolic administrator and faithful of the Eastern rite as well as those of the Latin rite. "All of these structures must be at the service of the Conference and of each one of the local ordinaries."

The Holy Father, noting that the petrine ministry of the Bishop of Rome includes being guarantor of the teaching of the universal Church, then turned to the Code of Canon Law. He said there must always be "correct application, case by case, of the norms of the Code of Canon Law, both Eastern and Western." He pointed to what he called "a certain legalism that, in practice, reduces this Code to a gathering of ecclesial laws that are not very theological and not very pastoral, contrary in themselves to the freedom of the children of God."

The Pope stated that "it is necessary to remember that pastoral action cannot be reduced to a certain 'pastoralism', understood in the sense of ignoring or attenuating other essential dimensions of the Christian mystery, among these the juridical. ... The pastoral truth can never be contrary to the truth of the Law of the Church."

AL;EPISCOPAL MINISTRY;...;BRAZIL;VIS;20030207;Word: 680;

AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, FEB 7, 2003 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Joschka Fischer, foreign minister of the Federal Republic of Germany and an entourage.

- Archbishop Ludwig Schick of Bamberg, Germany.

- Four prelates from the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil (Midwestern and Northern Regions II) on their "ad limina" visit:

- Bishop Capistrano Francisco Heim, O.F.M.,prelate of Itaituba.

- Bishop Heriberto Hermes, O.S.B., prelate of Cristalandia.
- Bishop Jesus Maria Cizaurre Berdonces, O.A.P., prelate of Cameta.

- Bishop Augustinho Perry, auxiliary of the Military Ordinariate.

Later this afternoon, the Holy Father is scheduled to receive Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, prefect of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

Yesterday afternoon, a meeting of all the heads of dicasteries of the Roman Curia took place in the presence of the Holy Father.

AP; AL;...;...;...;VIS;20030207;Word: 130;

GERMANY'S FOREIGN MINISTER RECEIVED BY HOLY FATHER

VATICAN CITY, FEB 7, 2003 (VIS) - Joaquin Navarro-Valls, director of the Holy See Press Office made the following statement early this afternoon about the visit today to the Vatican by Joschka Fischer, foreign minister of the Federal Republic of Germany:

"Today, February 7, Joschka Fischer, minister of foreign affairs of the Federal Republic of Germany, was received by Pope John Paul II and, afterwards, met with Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of state, accompanied by Archbishop Jean-Louis Tauran, secretary for Relations with States.

"The visit by Minister Fischer was a propitious occasion for an exchange of opinions on the problems of the present moment and, especially, on the noted crisis in Iraq and on the theme of the future European constitutional treaty.

"Concerning the Middle East: The Holy See's position, expressed in numerous documents and interventions, in favor of peace and solutions that respect international rights, was reiterated to the illustrious guest. What was also underlined was the responsibility of all parties involved to avoid that a tragic conflict arise.

"Then, on the question of the future European constitutional treaty, the Holy See pointed out how the values and elements already inserted into the project - published yesterday and relative to the first three chapters of the treaty - are fundamental values for the life of the (European) Union. In this regard surprise was expressed because the juridical statute of the Church and of religious communities was ignored. And finally, the hope was expressed that the current project will be perfected and the voids filled."

OP;FOREIGN MINISTER;...;GERMANY; FISCHER;VIS;20030207;Word: 270;