t eanc 0 VOL. 41, NO. 33 •
Friday, August 29, 1997
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Pope calls on young Catholics to live faith as signs of hope By CINDY WOODEN PARIS (CNS) - Baptism and confirmation lead to intimacy with God and solidarity with all people, Pope John Paul II told young people after baptizi ng 10 of their peers.
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make the proclamation about St. Therese, who died at the age of 24, because of her teachings on spirituality. The Oct. 19 proclamation will mark the first time in 27 years that the Catholic Church has had a new doctor of the church. St. Therese will become the 33rd saint honored with the title and the third woman. St. Teresa of Avila and St. Catherine of Siena were proclaimed doctors in 1970 by Pope Paul VI. The pope told the young people St. Therese "calls you to an infinite generosity; she invites you to remain in the heart of the church as disciples and ardent witnesses of Christ's charity." Police closed entrances to the racetrack well before the Aug. 24 Mass began because, they said, it had already reached its capacity of 900,000 people. Police estimated that at least 100,000 more stood outside along the fences, bunched as close as possible to large television
screens in order to watch the event. During the Mass, the pope gave first Communion to the 10 young people who were baptized just 15 hours earlier. Megan Costello, a 15-year-old from Ogden, Utah, represented North America in a group that included a French soldier, a Cuban and a Bolivian, a Cambodian and a Chinese now living in Taiwan, a Tahitian, a Russian, a Kenyan and a young man from Burkina Faso. The young people barely inclined their heads during the Aug. 23 baptisms as the pope poured a large measure of water over them, soaking hair, glasses and the front of their shirts. Costello looked as if she was holding her breath during the rite, taking a big gulp of air after the pope proclaimed her baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Dressed in big white capes by their godparents, the young people also were confirmed during the candlelight vigil service. "Live from now on as children of the light who know that they are reconciled by the cross of the savior," Pope John Paul told the young people at the vigil. Baptism and confirmation do not remove Christians from the world, "for we share the joys and hopes of people today," he said. "The Lord calls us to undertake our mission right where we are." Part of the mission, he said, is to build unity not just among people of di fferent countries and races, but also among divided Christians and with people of other faiths. The vigil took place on the eve of the 425th anniversary of the St. Bartholomew's Day Massacre, when thousands of minority Protestants were killed by the majority Catholics on the streets of Paris amid strong reli-
gious tensions. "We cannot forget" the massacre, the pope said at the beginning of his speech. "Christians did things which the Gospel condemns." Acknowledging the sins of the past, he said, "is an act of honesty and courage" that helps people learn and commit themselves to avoiding the temptation to similar acts in the future. "Belonging to different religious traditions must not constitute today a source of opposition and tension. Quite the contrary, our common love for Christ impels us to seek tirelessly the path of full unity:' he said. At the closing Mass, the pope said the Christian life is part of a natural human quest, the search for meaning and ultimately the search for God. "This world is wonderful and rich. It sets before us countless treasures. It enchants us. It attracts both our reason and our will," he said. "But in the end, it does not satisfy our spirit. ''The longer we live," the 77-year-old pope said, "the more we realize how precarious life is and the more we wonder about immortality. What exists beyond the frontiers of death?" The answer lies in the cross and resurrection of Christ, he said. Death will not have the last word when God's gift of his son is accepted. Just as he told 350 representatives to the Youth Forum from 130 countries during a more intimate Mass Aug. 23, the pope told the World Youth Day participants they were not to keep their experience of faith to themselves, but were to share it with the world. "The Spirit of God sends you with your brothers and sisters of the whole world to be Turn to page 8
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During his Aug. 21-24 stay in Paris for the celebration of World Youth Day, the pope repeatedly called young Catholics to live their faith as signs of hope and unity in an often . troubled and divided world. "The Word of God transforms the lives of those who accept it because it is the rule of faith and action," the pope said Aug. 23 at the vigil service, which included the initiation oHive young men and five young women into the church. At every appointment with the young people, Pope John Paul expressed his confidence that they would take their rightful place in the church and would put the values of their faith to work in the world. During the days, which the pope described as "dense and hot" because of the packed program and the unusually high temperatures, he highlighted two examples of faith and action for the young people to follow: Blessed Frederic Ozanam, whom he beatified Aug. 22, and St. Therese of Lisieux, whom he announc(:d would soon be proclaimed a doctor of the church. After the closing Mass at the Longchamp racetrack, the POP(: announced he would
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HUNDREDS OFTHOUSANDS of young people participating in the opening Mass of World Youth Day on the Champ$ de Mars in Paris are seen through an arch of the Eiffel Tower Aug. 19. At top, Pope John Paul II listens to hymns in Notre Dame Cathedral Aug. 22 during Frederic Ozanam's beatification ceremony. (eNS/Reuters photos)