AUDIENCES

AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, MAR 15, 2004 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father received in separate audiences:

- Giovanni Lonfernini I and Valeria Ciavatta I, captains regent of the Republic of San Marino, and an entourage.

- Cardinal Bernard Agre, archbishop of Abidjan, Ivory Coast.

- Two prelates of the Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference on their "ad limina" visit:

- Archbishop Francis Patrick Carroll of Canberra.

- Archbishop Adrian Leo Doyle of Hobart.

- Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, apostolic nuncio in Burundi, accompanied by his family members.

On Saturday March 13, the Holy Father received in separate audiences:

- Archbishop Ivo Scapolo, apostolic nuncio in Bolivia.

- Cardinal Giovanni Battista Re, prefect of the Congregation for Bishops.

- Archbishop Jozef Miroslaw Zycinski of Lublin, Poland.
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POPE CELEBRATES MASS FOR VICTIMS OF ATTACK IN MADRID

VATICAN CITY, MAR 15, 2004 (VIS) - Holy See Press Office Director, Joaquin Navarro-Valls, early this afternoon stated that "the Holy Father wished once again to celebrate Mass for the repose of the souls of the victims of the attacks in Spain. In addition, at noon he stopped for a moment of recollection, spiritually joining all those who are suffering because of this attack, and praying for their intentions."
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POPE REITERATES "ABSOLUTE CONDEMNATION" OF TERRORISM

VATICAN CITY, MAR 14, 2004 (VIS) - Today at noon an enormous crowd of faithful gathered in St. Peter's Square to pray the Angelus with Pope John Paul and to salute him on the day his pontificate became the third longest in history. In his traditional address to the pilgrims, the Holy Father once again expressed his "absolute condemnation" of last Thursday's barbaric terror attack in Madrid, and asked the Blessed Virgin "to protect and watch over the dear Spanish nation, Europe and the entire world." Following are his remarks in their entirety:

"The Gospel story proposed to us in this Sunday's liturgy refers to two tragic events at the time of Jesus: the cruel repression of a revolt and the collapse of the tower of Siloam on the nearby crowd. This brings us to current events of our days, marked unfortunately by repeated news of violence and death.

"Last Sunday I spoke of the hot spots of war and of the terrorist attacks that have bloodied various parts of the world. Last Thursday there was the dramatic attack in Madrid which caused 200 victims and more than 1,000 wounded. This horrendous crime shocked world public opinion. In the face of such barbarity we are profoundly shaken, and we ask how the human soul is able to conceive such abominable crimes.

"While I repeat my absolute condemnation of such unjustifiable acts, I express once again my participation in the pain of the families of the victims and my closeness in prayer to the wounded and to their families.

"The choral display of solidarity that arose in every corner of Spain last Friday, with the participation of political leaders from all of Europe, had an emotional echo throughout the world.

"It is precisely relying on the unified contribution of all the wholesome forces of the continent that we can look forward with trust and hope in a better future. In particular those who believe in God, Creator and Father of all men, must feel committed to working for the building of a more fraternal world, marked by solidarity, notwithstanding the difficulties and obstacles that are encountered in this necessary and non-deferable path."
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PROCLAIM GOSPEL TO SOCIETY THIRSTING FOR SPIRITUALITY

VATICAN CITY, MAR 12, 2004 (VIS) - Pope John Paul today welcomed bishops from the Netherlands as they complete their "ad limina" visit and spoke to them of the issues they highlighted in their quinquennial reports preparatory to this visit: secularization, proclaiming the Gospel and witnessing to Christ, the aggiornamento they have undertaken in the Church in the Netherlands and the vocation crisis. The bishops have just celebrated the 150th anniversary of the re-establishment of the episcopal hierarchy of the Netherlands.

"Your country has experienced," noted the Pope, "an intense phenomenon of secularization for thirty years, which has spread to the Catholic Church like wildfire and which continues unfortunately to mark Dutch society" and has led to a serious decline in the numbers of faithful He recalled that he had convened a special synod in Rome in 1980 for the bishops of the Netherlands to show his concern.

The Holy Father underscored the need for families, parishes and Catholic schools to constantly and everywhere "proclaim the Gospel of hope," to "announce the Good News of Christ's love, especially to the young ... who live in a society marked by moral relativism and by religious pluralism." He urged "Catholic teaching to maintain and strengthen its own identity, harmonizing it with the endless new demands of education in the midst of a pluralist society, in respect for others, but without ever renouncing what gives it its original richness."

"Being a witness to Christ in words and deeds," said the Pope, "is a responsibility shared by all the baptized and it implies certain conditions. How can one give what one does not himself possess? How can one speak of Christ and make others want to meet Him if one is not first His disciple?" He expressed "joy" that parishes "are rediscovering the Sunday Eucharist as the foundation and heart of their Christian life," noting that "ecclesial communion of the Eucharistic assembly is communion with one's bishops and with the Roman pontiff."

John Paul II then turned to the process of aggiornamento undertaken by the Dutch bishops, urging them to "take care not to limit this just to a formal restructuring, but rather to make it an occasion to rediscover the essential role of the parish and the mission proper to the faithful who comprise it to better mobilize everyone to proclaim the Gospel." He observed the "cosmopolitan face" of many parishes due to the presence of migrants, and encouraged "welcoming them as brothers, allowing them to bring to their own stone to the common building" in an "exchange of gifts."

The Pope then highlighted the severe crisis of vocations, both to the priesthood and religious life, saying that creating milieux in which vocations can flourish must be for the prelates "an absolute priority mission." He noted that some parishes welcome priests from other local parishes, even other continents, who are present for studies, stating that such collaboration is good "but we know well that each Church must be attached to fostering its own vocations." He also stressed the role of parents in creating a milieu favorable to vocations.

In closing, the Holy Father, noting the bishops' remarks about "a new thirst for spirituality" in their country, said he hoped everyone in the Church, "especially the lay faithful, will take to heart witnessing to their faith, bringing the light of the Gospel to all different sectors of society. May they show the greatness and beauty of marriage, ... the inalienable dignity of every human person in all realities, ...and in ethical issues that arise because of technological progress or economic pressures, and may they witness to the Christian values that contributed to forging Europe of today."
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AUDIENCES

AUDIENCES
VATICAN CITY, MAR 12, 2004 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Cardinal Eugenio de Araujo Sales, archbishop emeritus of Sao Sebastiao do Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

- Pedro Santana Lopes, mayor of Lisbon, Portugal and president of UCCLA, the Union of (Portuguese Speaking) Capital Cities in Asia, America, Africa and Portugal and an entourage.

- Archbishop Peter Stephan Zurbriggen, apostolic nuncio in Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, and apostolic administrator "ad nutum Sanctae Sedis" of the Apostolic Administration of Estonia.

- Archbishop Timothy Broglio, apostolic nuncio in the Dominican Republic and apostolic delegate in Puerto Rico.

- Archbishop Giuseppe Pittau.

- Cardinal Dario Castrillon Hoyos, prefect of the Congregation for Clergy.
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