L'OSSERVATORE ROMANO

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FORTIETH YEAR
UNICUIQUE SUUM NON PRAEVALEBUNT
N. 6 (1980) - 7 February 2007
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ANGELUS: SUNDAY, 4 FEBRUARY

Celebrating Consecrated Life
‘Love and desire life’
At noon on Sunday, 4 February, prior to lead- The “Week of life and of the family” begins in
ing the recitation of the Angelus with the faithful our Diocese of Rome today. It is an important op-
gathered in St Peter's Square, the Holy Father portunity to pray and reflect on the family, which
reflected on the Pro-Life Day being celebrated in is the “cradle” of life and of every vocation. We are
Italy, promoted by the Italian Bishops' Confer- well aware that the family founded on marriage is
ence on the theme: “Love and desire life”. He al- the natural environment in which to bear and raise
so commented on the “Week of life and of the children and thereby guarantee the future of all of
family”, which began that day in the Diocese of humanity.
Rome, and stressed that it was an important op-
portunity to pray and reflect on the family, “the Marriage in crisis
‘cradle’ of life and of every vocation”. The fol- However, we also know that marriage is going
lowing is a translation of the Pope’s Reflection, through a deep crisis and today must face numer-
which was given in Italian.
ous challenges. It is consequently necessary to de-
Dear Brothers and Sisters, fend, help, safeguard and value it in its unrepeat-
Today, Pro-Life Day, organized by the Bishops’ able uniqueness.
Conference on the theme: “Love and desire life”, is If this commitment is in the first place the duty
being celebrated in Italy. I cordially greet all those of spouses, it is also a priority duty of the Church
and of every public institution
to support the family by
means of pastoral and political
initiatives that take into ac-
count the real needs of mar-
ried couples, of the elderly and
of the new generations.
A peaceful family atmo-
The Presentation of Jesus, the
sphere, illumined by faith and Feast John Paul II chose as the
the holy fear of God also nur-
tures the budding and blos- World Day of Consecrated Life,
soming of vocations to the ser- reminds€Religious€to bring Christ's
vice of the Gospel. I am refer-
ring in particular not only to light to the world. See page 3.
those who are called to follow
Christ on the path of the
priesthood but also to all men
and women religious, the con-
secrated people we remem- Compassion and clarity
bered last Friday on the
“World Day of Consecrated
Life”.
Dear brothers and sisters, let
us pray that through a con-
stant effort to promote life and
the family institution, our com-
munities may be places of
communion and hope in
which, despite the many diffi-
culties, the great “yes” to au-
thentic love and to the reality
of the human being and the
family is renewed in accor-
dance with God’s original
plan. Let us ask the Lord,
through the intercession of
Mary Most Holy, to grant that
With bright green balloons saying ‘Yes to life’, supporters of the Italian
Pro-Life€Movement€listen€to€the€Holy€Father’s€Angelus€on€Sunday,€4€February. respect for the sacredness of
life will grow so that people
who are gathered in St Peter’s Square to witness will be ever more aware of the real needs of fam-
their commitment in support of life, from its con- ilies and that the number of those who help to
ception to its natural end. I join the Italian Bishops build the civilization of love in the world will in-
in renewing the appeal made several times by my crease.
venerable Predecessors to all men and women of After the Angelus the Pope said:
good will to welcome the great and mysterious gift I offer a warm welcome to the English-speaking
of life. pilgrims and visitors gathered for today’s Angelus
Life, which is a work of God, should not be de- prayer. My special greeting goes to the Govern- Notorious euthanasia case
nied to anyone, even the tiniest and most defence- ment officials from Sri Lanka engaged in the re-
less unborn child, and far less to a child with seri- construction of areas struck by the tsunami. To- demonstrates the negative
ous disabilities. At the same time, echoing the Pas- day’s Gospel shows us the great spiritual fruitful-
tors of the Church in Italy, I advise you not to fall ness that accompanies our wholehearted decision
influence of the media on
into the deceptive trap of thinking that life can be to answer the Lord’s call. May you and your fam- bioethics in anthropological
disposed of, to the point of “legitimizing its inter- ilies be strengthened in faith and confident hope in
ruption with euthanasia, even if it is masked by a God’s promises! issues. See page 10.
veil of human compassion”. I wish everyone a good Sunday.

At the GENERAL AUDIENCE on Wednesday, 31 Jan-

Synod€of€Bishops PAGE€2 Catholic-Orthodox€unity PAGE€5 uary, in the Vatican's Paul VI Audience Hall, the Holy
Father resumed his Catecheses on the Apostles of the
Church. He focused on the most important missionary
CAL€Vatican€visit PAGE€4 Migration€document PAGES€6-7 companions of St Paul: Barnabas, Silas (also called Sil-
vanus), and Apollos. The Pope emphasized that the ne-
cessity of their working and collaborating together
served as a means for growing in holiness.
New€Monotheist€volume PAGE€5 Papyrus€Gospel€find PAGES€8-9 PAGE 11