CARDINAL CASSIDY: DEVELOPMENTS IN JEWISH-CATHOLIC RELATIONS

VATICAN CITY, NOV 7, 2000 (VIS) - Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy, president of the Commission for Religious Relations with Jews, spoke yesterday at the University of Pennsylvania at the invitation of the Penn Newman-Hillel Ad Hoc Committee on Christian Jewish Relations. His address was entitled "Developments in Jewish-Catholic Relations. A New Spirit for a New Millennium."

Cardinal Cassidy highlighted the attention given by Pope John Paul II in his 22-year pontificate to building a better Jewish-Catholic relationship. He pointed to the Pope's visits to Rome's synagogue in 1986 and to the concentration camp at Auschwitz, his numerous public statements regarding Catholic-Jewish relations, his meetings with representatives of the Jewish people and his pilgrimage this past March to the Holy Land, including a visit to the Yad Vashem memorial.

The cardinal also quoted the Holy Father on the need for a Jewish-Catholic theological dialogue: "Theological reflection is part of the human intelligence and gives witness to our conscious acceptance of God's will."

During his stay in Philadelphia, Cardinal Cassidy celebrated Mass at St. Charles Borromeo Seminary and received an award from the Catholic Leadership Institute.

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COUNCIL DECLARATION ON ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT

VATICAN CITY, NOV 7, 2000 (VIS) - Following is the text of a declaration released today by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue on the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, and signed by Cardinal Francis Arinze, council president:

"In the last weeks the situation in Israel and in the Territories under the Palestinian Authority has deteriorated seriously. Tension has mounted, and conflict has resulted in a large number of victims.

"We wish to express our solidarity with all who have lost members of their families, and with all those who continue to suffer.

"We therefore appeal to the Jewish and Palestinian people to forgo violence and to take up once again that dialogue which is the only way to true peace.

"We reaffirm the importance of the Holy City of Jerusalem for Jews, Christians and Muslims. There can be no exclusive claim to the city. Jerusalem belongs moreover to the spiritual patrimony of humanity. There must be free access to its Holy Places for all, and especially for Jews, Christians and Muslims."

It concludes by stating that "religious leaders must be conscious of their responsibility in this matter."

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FIFTH PUBLIC SESSION OF PONTIFICAL ACADEMIES HELD TODAY

VATICAN CITY, NOV 7, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in the Vatican, the fifth public session of the Council for Coordinating Pontifical Academies was celebrated under the presidency of Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the council. The theme of the gathering was: "For a renewed Epiphany of beauty: Artists as protagonists of Christian humanism."

Taking part in today's session were members of the Pontifical Academies of St. Thomas Aquinas, of Theology and of Mary Immaculate as well as members of the International Marian Pontifical Academy, the Pontifical Academy of Fine Arts and Literature "dei Virtuosi al Pantheon," The Pontifical Roman Academy of Archeology and the Pontifical Academy "Cultorum Martyrum."

Following speeches by professors and academics, interspersed with classical music, Cardinal Poupard, who is also president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, gave an address and presented, in the name of John Paul II, the Pontifical Academies' prize.

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, NOV 7, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father:

- Appointed Fr. Malcolm Patrick McMahon O.P., prior of Blackfriars at Oxford, England, as bishop of Nottingham (area 13,074, population 3,560,000, Catholics 142,600, priests 189, permanent deacons 14, religious 301), England. The bishop-elect was born in London, England, in 1949 and ordained a priest in 1982. He succeeds Bishop James Joseph McGuinness, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same diocese the Holy Father accepted, upon having reached the age limit.
- Appointed Fr. Mark Jabale O.S.B., abbot of Belmont, as coadjutor bishop of Menevia (area 9,716, population 611,679, Catholics 28,764, priests 57, religious 171), Wales. The bishop-elect was born in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1933 and ordained a priest in 1958.

- Appointed Cardinal Bernardin Gantin, dean of the College of Cardinals, as his special envoy to the National Eucharistic Congress of Haiti, due to take place at Port-au-Prince from December 1 to 3.

- Appointed Fr. Jerome E. Listecki of the clergy of Chicago, U.S.A., pastor of the parish of St. Ignatius, as auxiliary bishop of Chicago (area 3,653, population 5,682,000, Catholics 2,358,000, priests 1,725, permanent deacons 612, religious 3,469). The bishop-elect was born in Chicago in 1949 and ordained a priest in 1975.

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U.N. REPORTS 22.3 MILLION REFUGEES, DISPLACED PERSONS WORLDWIDE

VATICAN CITY, NOV 7, 2000 (VIS) - Archbishop Renato Martino, Holy See permanent observer to the United Nations, spoke yesterday before the Third Committee of the 55th session of the General Assembly on Item 109, the Report of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, Questions Relating to Refugees, Returnees and Displaced Persons and Humanitarian Questions.

He pointed to "the steady success" of the work of the UNHCR regarding refugees and displaced persons but added that "unfortunately ... there continue to be situations where people are forced from their homes. This remains one of the great tragedies of our times."

The archbishop cited data from the UNHCR Report on refugees, saying their numbers has increased worldwide to 22.3 million, of whom 11.6 million are refugees and 4.08 internally displaced persons. He stated that from 50 to 70 percent are children, "some of whom have lived their entire life in a refugee camp."

Archbishop Martino, underscoring that "poor countries have borne the heaviest burden of receiving refugees," declared that they "need the solidarity of the international community, particularly of the wealthier nations, who accept only a small part of this burden."

"The Holy See," he said, "continues to call for a peaceful solution of conflicts and the recognition and respect of human dignity. ... (It) encourages the development of a clearer system of responsibility for internally displaced persons and welcomes the work of the upcoming World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance."

"The Holy See welcomes the special attention that was given to family protection issues," he concluded. "It is no surprise to my delegation to read in paragraph 21 of the Report that '... experience has shown that the family unit has a better chance of reintegrating in their home or integrating into a new country than do individual refugees'."

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