CARDINAL SODANO READS A TEXT ON THE "THIRD SECRET"

VATICAN CITY, MAY 13, 2000 (VIS) - This morning at the end of Mass at the Shrine of Fatima, Portugal, during which the Pope beatified the shepherd children Jacinta and Francisco, Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano read out, in Portuguese, a text concerning the third secret of Fatima. The text is given in full below:

"At the conclusion of this solemn celebration, I feel bound to offer to our beloved Holy Father John Paul II, on behalf of all present, heartfelt good wishes for his approaching eightieth birthday and to thank him for his significant pastoral ministry for the good of all God's Holy Church.

"On the solemn occasion of his visit to Fatima, His Holiness has directed me to make an announcement to you. As you know, the purpose of his visit to Fatima has been to beatify the two 'little shepherds'. Nevertheless he also wishes his pilgrimage to be a renewed gesture of gratitude to Our Lady for her protection during these years of his papacy. This protection seems also to be linked to the so-called 'third part' of the secret of Fatima.

"That text contains a prophetic vision similar to those found in Sacred Scripture, which do not describe with photographic clarity the details of future events, but rather synthesize and condense against a unified background events spread out over time in a succession and a duration which are not specified. As a result, the text must be interpreted in a symbolic key.

"The vision of Fatima concerns above all the war waged by atheist systems against the Church and Christians, and it describes the immense suffering endured by the witnesses to the faith in the last century of the second millennium. It is an interminable Way of the Cross led by the Popes of the twentieth century.

"According to the interpretation of the 'little shepherds,' which was also recently confirmed by Sister Lucia, the 'bishop clothed in white' who prays for all the faithful is the Pope. As he makes his way with great effort towards the Cross amid the corpses of those who were martyred (bishops, priests, men and women religious and many lay persons), he too falls to the ground, apparently dead, under a burst of gunfire.

"After the assassination attempt of May 13 1981, it appeared evident to His Holiness that it was 'a motherly hand which guided the bullet's path,' enabling the 'dying Pope' to halt 'at the threshold of death.' On the occasion of a visit to Rome by the then bishop of Leiria-Fatima, the Pope decided to give him the bullet which had remained in the jeep after the assassination attempt, so that it might be kept in the Shrine. At the behest of the bishop, the bullet was later set in the crown of the statue of Our Lady of Fatima.

"The successive events of 1989 led, both in the Soviet Union and in a number of countries of Eastern Europe, to the fall of the Communist regime which promoted atheism. For this too His Holiness offers heartfelt thanks to the Most Holy Virgin. In other parts of the world, however, attacks against the Church and against Christians, together with the burden of suffering which they involve, tragically continue. Even if the events to which the third part of the Secret of Fatima refers now seem part of the past, Our Lady's call to conversion and penance, issued at the beginning of the twentieth century, remains timely and urgent today. 'The Lady of the message seems to read the signs of the times - the signs of our time - with special insight... The insistent invitation of Mary Most Holy to penance is nothing but the manifestation of her maternal concern for the fate of the human family, in need of conversion and forgiveness.'

"In order that the faithful may better receive the message of Our Lady of Fatima, the Pope has charged the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith with making public the third part of the secret, after the preparation of an appropriate commentary.

"Let us thank Our Lady of Fatima for her protection. To her maternal intercession let us entrust the Church of the Third Millennium.

"'Sub tuum praesidium confugimus, Sancta Dei Genetrix!.'

"Intercede pro Ecclesia Dei! Intercede pro Sancto Patre Iohanne Paolo II! Amen'."

The complete service on the Pope's trip to Fatima will be transmitted on Monday May 15.

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PUT MAN, NOT MONEY, AT THE CENTER OF WORK

VATICAN CITY, MAY 12, 2000 (VIS) - Made public today was Pope John Paul's Letter to Laurent Katame, president of the World Movement of Christian Workers, on the occasion of its general assembly in Sao Paulo, Brazil. Written in French, it is dated May 7.

"By their work," the Pope writes, "men have the mission of building a just and fraternal world, where the place and the dignity to which workers have a right is recognized. By caring for creation, they preserve and develop the goods of the earth. Doing this makes them turn to God, Whose creative work they extend. ... Work also turns man towards his brothers by putting into practice love for one's neighbor."

He underlines that the world movement "must, at all of its levels, have solicitude for the spiritual, moral and intellectual formation of its members.
Saying "work is not all there is to life," John Paul II stresses the importance of "leisure time, personal and family life and Sunday rest which allows one to turn towards God."

He also underscores the importance of putting man, not money, at the center of work, especially in view of the phenomenon of globalization. Writing of the "enormous transformations which today overwhelm economies and the world of work, ... the great technological advances and new political and cultural situations," the Pope says "no one must be resigned to a globalization which is founded solely on economic criteria. ... Workers should commit themselves to avoid the dangers of a globalization and technology which crush people."

The Holy Father asked that "special attention be given to young people looking for their first job, to the unemployed, and to those with insufficient wages or who lack material means."

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SPORT MUST BE LINKED TO SPIRITUAL VALUES

VATICAN CITY, MAY 12, 2000 (VIS) - This morning, John Paul II received organizers and participants of the 83rd 'Giro d'Italia' cycle race which starts tomorrow in St. Peter's Square.

"This year's race," said the Pope, "assumes a special significance in the context of the Great Jubilee 2000. ... It could be said that tomorrow's stage is not just the 'prologue' to the 'Giro d'Italia' but constitutes the first stage of the sports peoples' Jubilee which, if God wills, we will have the joy of celebrating together on the last Sunday of October in Rome's Olympic Stadium."

The Holy Father highlighted the relationship "that must always unite sporting activity and spiritual values. (This must) constitute an important opportunity for reflection and renewal so that sport may shine with that clarity, coherence, honesty and spirit of sharing that makes it a meaningful vehicle for the highest values of humanity."

All sporting activity, he added, requires "preparation, constancy in training, awareness of the limits of individual capacity, loyalty in competition, acceptance of precise rules, respect for the opponent and a sense of solidarity and altruism."

John Paul II highlighted that the technical resources used in the race must be put "at the service of the athlete and not vice versa, avoiding useless risks that could be damaging to participants or spectators."

The Pope told the cyclists that he hopes they live this race "animated by authentic 'sportsmanship', in other words by a great competitive passion, but also by a great spirit of sharing and solidarity".

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POPE LEAVES TODAY FOR FATIMA, HIS 92ND APOSTOLIC TRIP

VATICAN CITY, MAY 12, 2000 (VIS) - For the third time in his pontificate, John Paul II will travel to Fatima, Portugal, leaving Rome at 4 p.m. today for the start of his 92nd foreign apostolic trip. He was previously in Fatima on May 12-13, 1982 and May 12-13, 1991. The 1,967-kilometer trip will take three hours. The Pope is scheduled to travel from the Lisbon Airport to Fatima this evening by helicopter.

Tomorrow morning, during Mass on the esplanade of the shrine, he will beatify Jacinta and Francisco Marto, two of the three shepherd children to whom the Virgin Mary appeared six times between May 13 and October 13, 1917. The third child, Lucia de Jesus, is now a 93-year old Carmelite religious whose name is Sister Mary Lucy of the Immaculate Heart. She will be at the beatification of her cousins.

Francisco Marto was born in nearby Aljustrel on June 11, 1908 and died on April 4, 1919. Jacinta was born on March 11, 1910 and died February 20, 1920. Both are buried in the basilica of the Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima. Except for martyrs, they are the two youngest persons ever to be beatified.

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FOLLOWING CHRIST REQUIRES CONSTANT INTERIOR GROWTH

VATICAN CITY, MAY 11, 2000 (VIS) - In the Clementine Hall at midday today, the Pope received 400 faithful from Venezuela who have come to Rome on a Jubilee pilgrimage. Prior to their encounter with the Pope, they participated in a Eucharistic celebration in the Vatican Basilica.

The Lord, said the Pope in his address, "asks everyone to change their mentality and lifestyle in order to closely follow (Him) and thus face daily life according to the spirit of the Gospel. To radically follow Christ requires intense and constant interior growth. To this end it is necessary to assiduously cultivate prayer, to participate with as much frequency as possible in the Eucharist and the Sacrament of penance and to practice the Evangelical virtues."

John Paul II recalled the floods that struck Venezuela last year causing numerous victims. "From the very first, I raised prayers for the dead, asking the Lord for consolation, serenity and light for those who, amidst so much pain, were faced with the arduous task of reconstruction." He encouraged them "to stay close to those who are still suffering the tragic consequences of that situation, to remain united with one another and to be concerned for other people's destiny even if it means making sacrifices.

"The other present-day challenge is to follow the path of new evangelization. ... Evangelization will also help to ensure that the values of God's Kingdom are present in society at a time in which your country is revising its institutional and legislative structures. In this matter, it is necessary that you Christians make your voice heard so that evangelical values continue to be present in your homeland and do not, under any circumstances, lose their importance."

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