Pope John Paul II turned his thoughts to victims of the Asian tsunami disaster in his New Year's prayers as the death toll edged towards 126,000
Published:
2 January 2005 y., Sunday
Pope John Paul II turned his thoughts to victims of the Asian tsunami disaster in his New Year's prayers as the death toll edged towards 126,000, and urged the world to strive towards peace through dialogue, justice and forgiveness.
The 84-year-old head of the Roman Catholic Church addressed a special greeting to ambassadors of countries hit by the "terrible calamity" last Sunday in a sermon he read in its entirety at St Peter's Basilica.
"I assure them of my prayers for the victims of the catastrophe and for their families and I take note with satisfaction of the movement of solidarity which is developing everywhere in the world," he added.
"This sort of human solidarity, along with the grace of God, gives hope for better days to come in the year that begins today," he said.
A Vatican spokesman said the pontiff started off 2005 by celebrating mass in his private chapel at midnight for victims of the disaster that struck six days ago.
The pope, who is suffering from Parkinson's disease but was in relatively good form, said World Peace Day Saturday was "an invitation to Christians and to all men to reaffirm their wish to build peace".
Šaltinis:
nst.com.my
Copying, publishing, announcing any information from the News.lt portal without written permission of News.lt editorial office is prohibited.
The most popular articles
51-year-old mother of eight, sits beside her sick husband, Tuy Muy, 52, in Battambang Provincial Referral Hospital. He is lying on a bed with a stomach problem, battling nausea and vomiting.
more »
The length of maternity and paternity leave are at the heart of a crucial vote in the plenary sitting of March 24-25.
more »
The perception women have of the EU, the way the economic and financial crisis is affecting women and the lessons to be learnt ahead of the 2014 elections are among the issues to be tackled during a colloquium being held at the European Parliament on Tuesday.
more »
To achieve quicker de facto gender equality, Commission and Member States should adopt and implement specific gender equality policies, Parliament said in a resolution adopted on Thursday.
more »
Are you thinking about setting up your own business or are you already a successful entrepreneur? The Erasmus for Young Entrepreneurs exchange scheme offers an excellent opportunity for new entrepreneurs to acquire relevant skills for managing a small or medium-sized enterprise (SME).
more »
The pain of divorce and separation is all too often accompanied by financial and emotional hardship when one parent lives abroad and refuses to provide financial help.
more »
Most Europeans still do not know they can call 112 anywhere in the EU to contact the police, fire brigade or an ambulance.
more »
Helping to meet Haiti's humanitarian, reconstruction and nation-building needs must be the EU's priority in tackling the earthquake's aftermath, says Parliament in a resolution approved on Wednesday.
more »
Further work is needed to continue improving access to safe drinking-water at home, sewerage systems and safe bathing water throughout the European Region.
more »
Poor housing remains a blight across Europe and Tuesday evening MEPs will debate a plan to extend EU funding to help renovate and repair housing stock for the poorest people on the continent.
more »