ETHICS AND MAN MUST BE AT CENTER OF BANKING ACTIVITY

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in the Paul VI Hall, Pope John Paul welcomed 7,500 participants in the Jubilee of the Bank of Rome, and thanked them for their collaboration with the Central Jubilee Committee, and especially for their contribution during World Youth Day in August.

Pointing out that the "scope of a credit institution such as yours is to administer in a prudent manner the resources entrusted to you in order to support the economic activity of families, businesses, institutions and organizations which ask for your mediation," the Pope stated that their work "assumes a relevant social value."

He highlighted "the importance of the banking system and the responsibility of those who administer it. ... A banking institution cannot fail to make reference to the ethical values which direct various aspects of human action. If banks aim solely at pursuing maximum profits for themselves, ... they do not present themselves as instruments of growth and development for the community, but rather as an element which weighs down or puts the brake (on activity)."

The Holy Father stressed that "the Church's doctrine affirms the priority of the human factor in the financial and credit aims of every banking institution."

"Unfortunately," he observed," one cannot hide the fact that even today they are deviant forms of credit. ... I have already on many occasions underlined the difficulties and discomforts in which the victims of speculation linked to illicit forms of credit find themselves. A responsible banking institution .... can certainly do a great deal in such an atmosphere."

In concluding remarks, John Paul II urged them to "continue to offer solid support to all serious initiatives in favor of persons in difficulty, of young people and of volunteer work."

AC;BANK ROME; JUBILEE;...;...<;VIS;20001113;Word: 290;

BISHOPS GIVE $49,000 TO HOLY FATHER FOR CHARITY

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - A communique published today announced that during the October 6 penitential celebration in St. John Lateran Basilica, on the occasion of the Jubilee of Bishops, a collection was taken up and given to the Holy Father to be used as he wished for charity. The amount collected was 106.5 million lire, or $49,000.

The Holy Father has decided to give this sum to Boys and Girls Town in Mbare, Rwanda, a center established through the Pontifical Council for the Family in collaboration with the Episcopal Conference of Rwanda and the apostolic nunciature in that country. There are 140 children, victims of the Lake Region conflicts, who live there and another 100 children from nearby towns who visit this center.

"Boys and Girls Town," states the communique, "offers them an integral education, and helps all those who have been deprived of joy and love to experience a climate, proper to a family, of welcome and tenderness. With this munificent gesture, the Holy Father has generously met the needs of so many sorely tried African children ."

...;GIFT; BISHOPS; CHILDREN;...;RWANDA;VIS;20001113;Word: 190;

SPECIAL ENVOY TO CELEBRATIONS IN FRENCH DIOCESE

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - Made public today was a Letter from the Pope, written in Latin and dated October 20, in which he names Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger, archbishop of Paris, France, as his special envoy to celebrations for the 150th anniversary of Basse-Terre and Pinte-a-Pitre, Guadeloupe. The event is due to take place in that diocese on November 19.

The mission accompanying the cardinal will be made up of Frs. Yves Gillot and Rene Faron, respectively pastor of the parish of Sts. Peter and Paul, Guadeloupe, and vicar of pastoral unity of St. Rosa-Deshaies, Guadeloupe.

JPII-LETTER;SPECIAL ENVOY;...;LUSTIGER;VIS;20001113;Word: 110;

THE SHROUD OF TURIN REVEALS THE MEANING OF SUFFERING

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Square, the Pope received groups of pilgrims from different Italian dioceses as well as various other groups.

The Pope encouraged faithful from the archdiocese of Messina-Lipari-Santa Lucia del Mela, to "look to the third millennium and offer the liberating joy of the Gospel to all. Listen to the needs of families and young people and give them fertile occasions for religious formation. Seek out the poor and the suffering, helping them to experience the tenderness of God, heavenly Father of all human beings."

Addressing pilgrims from the archdiocese of Turin, the Holy Father recalled the visit he made to that city last year, when he prayed before the Holy Shroud. He said: "In that mysterious mirror of the Gospel, it is possible for each to discover the sense of his own suffering as a participation in that of Christ, source of salvation for all humanity." He also assured them of his prayers for those communities in the diocese affected by last month's floods and expressed the desire that "everyone can, as soon as possible, return to their normal family and social life."

John Paul II also greeted participants in the international congress promoted by the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples concerning the message of Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini on emigration. "May the witness and message of Mother Frances Xavier Cabrini, audacious and generous apostle of migrants, always illuminate all your activities and projects in favor of migrants, guiding you to develop with them a dialogue that is sincere and respectful of individuals."

AC;JUBILEE PILGRIMAGES;...;...;VIS;20001113;Word: 280;

MAN MUST USE, NOT ABUSE, THE EARTH

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - At 5:30 this afternoon Pope John Paul II joined thousands of people involved in the world of agriculture during their Jubilee celebrations in the Paul VI Hall on the theme "Jubilee of the Land: To Cultivate and Protect." He said he wished to reflect with them "on the current state of this important sector of life and the economy and on the ethical and social perspectives which regard it."

He noted that "the Church has always had a special view of this sphere of work, which has even been expressed in important magisterial documents." He recalled in particular Blessed Pope John XXIII's "Mater et Magistra" and pointed out that, since that time, not only do there remain problems in the agricultural sector to solve, but new ones have been added.

"The Church obviously does not have technical solutions to propose," said the Holy Father, but rather "proposes those spiritual values which give meaning to life." The first of these is that "the land is God's: And therefore, it must be treated according to His law. If, with respect to natural resources, an irresponsible 'culture of domination' ... has been affirmed, with devastating ecological consequences. this certainly does not respond to the will of God." Man "must use, not abuse, the earth" as he is the "collaborator of the Creator, a stupendous mission but also marked by precise limits."

The Pope went on to say that, when it is a question of promoting agricultural production by applying biotechnologies, these "must first undergo rigorous scientific and ethical checks."

John Paul II then highlighted another "principle dear to the Church's social doctrine, that is, the universal destination of the goods of the earth." He said he was not denying legitimate ownership, but rather saying that "God's earth is the earth of each man, of all men!"

"Every man, every people, has a right to live by the fruits of the earth. It is an intolerable scandal that, at the start of the third millennium, so many people are reduced to hunger and live in conditions unworthy of man. We can no longer limit ourselves to academic discussions. We must remove this shame of mankind with appropriate political and economic choices on a worldwide scale."

It is up to man to remedy these situations, and to remove the causes, said the Pope. "It is man who can build or destroy, who can show respect or contempt, who can share or refuse to share."

He concluded by stating that everyone, Christians in particular, must resist the tendency to "irrational consumerism, a type of 'culture of waste', which has become a widespread lifestyle" and must promote "a culture of solidarity."

AC;JUBILEE AGRICULTURE;...;...;VIS;20001113;Word: 460;

OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father appointed:

- Bishop Ubaldo Ramon Santana Sequera F.M.I., of Ciudad Guayana, Venezuela, as archbishop of Maracaibo (area 10,761, population 2,083,785, Catholics 1,747,000, priests 142, permanent deacons 4, religious 388), Venezuela. The archbishop-elect was born in Cagua, Venezuela, in 1941, ordained a priest in 1968 and consecrated bishop in 1990.

- Fr. John Ribat M.S.C., master of novices at Suva, Fiji, as auxiliary bishop of Bereina (area 19,146, population 80,000, Catholics 62,656, priests 17, permanent deacons 1, religious 51), Papua New Guinea. The bishop-elect was born at Volavolo, Papua New Guinea, in 1957 and ordained a priest in 1985.

- Archbishop Giuseppe Lazzarotto, apostolic nuncio in Iraq and Jordan, as apostolic nuncio in Ireland.

NER; NEA; NN;...;...;SANTANA; RIBAT; LAZZAROTTO;VIS;20001113;Word: 120;

PRESENTATION OF INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE: "HEALTH AND SOCIETY"

VATICAN CITY, NOV 11, 2000 (VIS) - At 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday November 15 in the Holy See Press Office, the international conference "Health and Society" will be presented. The conference has been organized by the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers and will take place in the Vatican on November 16, 17 and 18.

Participating in the presentation will be Archbishop Javier Lozano Barragan, Bishop Jose Luis Redrado O.H. and Fr. Felice Ruffini M.I., respectively president, secretary and under-secretary of the pontifical council.

OP;CONFERENCE HEALTH; SOCIETY;...;LOZANO;VIS;20001113;Word: 100;

NEW PORTUGUESE AMBASSADOR PRESENTS LETTERS OF CREDENCE

VATICAN CITY, NOV 13, 2000 (VIS) - This morning, John Paul II received the Letters of Credence of the new ambassador of Portugal, Pedro Jose Ribeiro de Menezes, and affirmed that on his visit to Fatima last May to beatify the shepherd children Jacinta nd Francisco, he was able to verify "how the Christian religion molds the very soul of Portugal."

The Pope recalled that the Church claims "the right to give its opinion" on laws and institutions in order to distinguish "that which is coherent with a well-formed conscience." On this subject, he highlighted that the Church in Portugal has made her voice heard on "the iniquitous law of abortion and on giving the family, in the sense of matrimonial union, the same legal status as new and completely different forms of union with which it cannot be reconciled."

The Pope said that "we must denounce - as a violation of the original assignment we received - those people who do not educate in authentic liberty, in truth and in respect for love and for family values." He added that the Church "wishes with all her strength to work for this cause within her own sphere, in full respect for the liberty of conscience."

The Pope emphasized the "broad and almost forced coexistence of the souls of various peoples who have forged the great, I would almost say universal, soul of Portugal." One result of this is the "Community of Portuguese-speaking Countries." He also emphasized "the great solidarity shown by Portugal during the bloody drama of East Timor" and during the return of Macao to China. "With like sentiments," he concluded, "your nation is living through the drama in Angola."

CD;CREDENTIALS;...;PORTUGAL; DE MENEZES;VIS;20001113;Word: 290;

AGRICULTURE MUST BE SUPPORTED BY SOCIAL ASSISTANCE

VATICAN CITY, NOV 12, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in St. Peter's Square, the Pope celebrated Mass for 120,000 people, most of them farmers and agricultural workers from all over the world. He affirmed that if "the most refined technology" is not harmonized with nature, human life will run serious risks.

Among those participating in the Eucharistic celebration, which marked the Jubilee of the agricultural world, were 100,000 members of the largest European agricultural organization, Coldiretti, who filled the square with their yellow banners.

"Agricultural activity in our time," said the Holy Father, "has had to face the consequences of industrialization and the development - not always well-ordered - of urban areas, as well as the phenomena of atmospheric pollution, the ecological imbalance, the discharge of toxic waste and deforestation."

He went on to say that "it is necessary that agricultural work become ever better organized and supported by social assistance that fully repays the effort it involves and the truly great worth that distinguishes it. If the world of the most refined technology is not reconciled with the simple language of nature in a healthy equilibrium, then the life of man will run ever greater risks of which we already see the first worrying signs."

After encouraging those present to "resist the temptation of a productivity and profit that are detrimental to respect for nature," he recalled that the world was entrusted to man to cultivate and protect. "When this principle is forgotten," he added, "and we become tyrants and not guardians of the earth, then that earth will sooner or later rebel."

The Holy Father concluded by highlighting the conditions of extreme poverty suffered by so many people who live from agriculture: "Vast regions are devastated by frequent natural calamities. Sometimes, to these disasters are added the consequences of wars that, apart from provoking victims, sow destruction and depopulate fertile areas, sometimes leaving them infested with mines or poisonous substances."

After Mass and prior to praying the angelus, the Pope thanked Jacques Diouf, director general of the Food and Agricultural Organization, and Paolo Bedoni, representative of the agricultural workers, and he greeted those present in eight languages.

HML;JUBILEE AGRICULTURE;...;...;VIS;20001113;Word: 360;

AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, NOV 13, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received Archbishop Luigi Dossena, apostolic nuncio in Slovakia.

On Saturday, November 11, he received in separate audiences:

- Archbishop Sergio Sebastiani, president of the prefecture for Economic Affairs of the Holy See.
- Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

AP;...;...;... ;VIS;20001113;Word: 50;

SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH: IMPARTIALITY, HONOR AND TRUTH

VATICAN CITY, NOV 13, 2000 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received participants in the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. The assembly has been meeting in the Vatican from November 10 to 13 and considering the theme: "Science and the future of humanity."

"All scientists," said the Pope, "through personal study and research, perfect themselves and their own humanity. ... For you as for many others, scientific research constitutes the path to a personal encounter with the truth and, perhaps, a privileged place for encountering God, Creator of heaven and earth. Seen in this light, science shines forth in all its splendor as a good that can motivate existence, as a great experience of liberty in support of truth, and as a fundamental work of service."

John Paul II highlighted that "truth, liberty and responsibility are all part of the experience of scientists," and that they must "start down the path of research," with intellectual impartiality and honor "and with the kind of 'reverence' that is fitting for the human spirit in its approach to the truth."

"The ethical and moral responsibilities linked with scientific research can, then, be seen as an internal requirement of science inasmuch as it is a fully human activity, and not as a control or, worse still, an imposition that comes from outside." Scientists know that "the truth cannot be negotiated, darkened or abandoned to free conventions or to agreements between power groups, society and States."

AC;SCIENCE; HUMANITY;...;...;VIS;20001113;Word: 250;

NOBEL PEACE PRIZE LAUREATES WELCOMED BY JOHN PAUL II

VATICAN CITY, NOV 13, 2000 (VIS) - This morning in the Room of the Popes, John Paul II welcomed a group of Nobel Peace Prize laureates at the conclusion of their Second International Forum in Rome, greeting in particular Mikhail Gorbachev, president of the International Foundation for Socio-Economic and Political Studies.

The Pope observed that "men and women everywhere look to the future in the hope of real and lasting peace, founded on a civilization which respects the rights of all and safeguards the authentic common good. ... At this significant moment of history, a concerted effort must be made to ensure that new generations reject the ways of discrimination, exclusion and conflict, and set out resolutely on the path to peace in a spirit of openness to the values and traditions of others."

He praised their "lead ... in seeking to promote a culture of non-violence and peace among the children of the world during the coming decade," and "in recognizing that a civilization of peace cannot be built without tackling the problem of external debt."

AC;NOBEL PRIZE LAUREATES;...;...;VIS;20001113;Word: 180;