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Vatican City, Vatican, 18th October 2004 (CNA) -
Pope John Paul II
inaugurated the year of the Eucharist with the
celebration of Mass on Sunday, October 17, concomitantly
with the closing Mass of the 48th International
Eucharistic Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico.
Via satellite, the Pope
said to the participants in the Congress in Guadalajara
that "the theme of the congress, 'The Eucharist; Light
and Life of the New Millennium', invites us to consider
the Eucharistic mystery not only in itself but also in
relationship to the problems of our times."
"The human heart needs
light, as it is weighed down by sin, often disoriented
and tired, tried by sufferings of every type,”said the
Pope. “The world needs light in the difficult search for
a peace that seems so distant, at the beginning of a
millennium upset and humiliated by violence, by
terrorism and by war."
Emphasizing that life is
the greatest human aspiration, the Pope noted that
"threatening shadows weigh on this universal longing,
the shadows of a culture that denies respect for life in
every stage; the shadow of an indifference that send
countless people to destinies of hunger and
underdevelopment: the shadow of scientific research that
often aims to serve the egoism of the
strongest."
"We must all feel called by
the needs of so many of our brothers and sisters,"
without forgetting that nourishing ourselves with the
Body of Christ "means welcoming life itself from God,
opening ourselves to the logic of love and sharing,"
said the Holy Father.
As did the disciples of
Emmaus, ask "the divine Wayfarer, Who knows our hearts,
not to leave us as prisoners of evening shadows,”
instructed the Holy Father.
“Sustain us in our fatigue,
pardons our sins, orient our steps to the path of good.
... Bless all of mankind!" he prayed.
In conclusion, addressing
the Lord, the Pope said: "In the Eucharist You made
yourself 'the remedy for immortality': give us delight
in a full life that makes us walk on this earth as
trusting and joyous pilgrims, always looking to the
goal, the end of the life that has no end. Stay with us,
Lord. Stay with us!"
The Pope conclude with the
announcement that the next International Eucharistic
Congress will be held in Quebec, Canada in
2008.
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