Vatican Media Watch
Pope Benedict Encourages
UCAN, Nov. 15 — Welcoming Japan’s new
ambassador to the
The Holy Father received
Ambassador Kagefumi Ueno at the
Benedict also praised
He called for the transformation
of that commitment into “an authentic solidarity that stimulates the growth of
the poorest countries.”
Pope Benedict noted with joy the respect the Catholic Church enjoys in
Italian President to Pope: I Count on
You
AGI, Nov. 20 — Italian President Giorgio Napolitano told Pope Benedict “our main worry is how to unify the nation and find cohesion in Italian society,” reported the Italian news agency.
During his meeting with the Holy Father, the ex-communist stated, “Dear Holy Father, we know we can count on your special sensitivity and alertness.”
According to AsiaNews, Benedict told the president that religious freedom is not only the individual right of each person to profess and display one’s faith, but it is also the collective right of families, groups and the Church itself, and engages civil power to “create conditions favorable to the fostering of religious life, so that citizens are truly able to exercise their religious rights and fulfill their respective duties.”
In his remarks, Pope Benedict also affirmed that the Church “is not and does not intend to be a political agent,” but “has a profound interest in the good of the political community” and that it is up to Catholic laypeople to affirm in society the principles that inspire them.
Holy Father Urges Prudence on the Highways
INDIA CATHOLIC, Nov. 20 — Pope Benedict XVI appealed for respect of the rules of the road on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, the news service reported.
After praying the midday Angelus
with the crowds gathered in St. Peter’s Square Nov. 20, the Pope recited in
French a prayer to the Lord to receive “in his peace all the persons who died
in traffic accidents.” Remembering that the injured often suffer long-lasting
problems, the Holy Father appealed “emphatically to automobile drivers to
respect traffic rules vigilantly and to pay ever more attention to others.”
Traffic accidents are one of the main causes of deaths in the world. In a 2005
report, the World Health Organization revealed that these accidents, especially
frequent in urban areas of developing countries, cause 1.2 million deaths a
year, or 3,000 a day. Tens of millions of people are injured.
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- December 3-9, 2006