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January 22

Pope blesses lambs on feast of St. Agnes

Rome, 22 (NE) Following a centuries-old tradition, Pope John Paul II blessed yesterday morning two lambs, whose wool will be used to make the palliums bestowed on new metropolitan archbishops. The palliums will be bestowed to the Archbishops on June 29, feast of Sts. Peter and Paul, Apostles.

The tradition of blessing the lambs takes place every year on the January 21 liturgical memory of St. Agnes, a virgin who suffered martyrdom about 305 A.D. and whose symbol is a lamb. She is buried in the basilica named for her in Rome on the Via Nomentana and after the papal blessing the lambs are brought to this basilica.

In a 1978 document, "Inter Eximina Episcopalis," Pope Paul VI restricted use of the pallium to the Pope and to metropolitan archbishops. In 1984 John Paul II decreed that the pallium would be conferred on the metropolitans on the June 29th solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul.

The lambs are raised by the Trappist Fathers of the Abbey of the Three Fountains and the palliums are made by the Sisters of St. Cecelia from the newly-shorn wool.

Fourth World Meeting of Families starts today in the Philippines

Rome, 22 (NE) The Fourth World Meeting of Families, promoted by the Pontifical Council for the Family, will start today in Manila, the Philippines. The theme of the meeting, chosen by the Holy Father, is "The Christian Family: Good News for the Third Millennium." The Pope's special envoy to the five-day encounter is Cardinal Alfonso Lopez Trujillo, council president.

The three previous meetings took place in 1994 in Rome, 1997 in Rio de Janeiro and again in Rome during the Jubilee Year 2000. A communique from the pontifical council states that massive numbers of participants are expected at the encounter, whose logistics are being taken care of by the archdiocese of Manila. Delegates from 75 countries have registered: The largest number is expected to come from the Philippines.

January 22-24 will be dedicated to an International Pastoral Theological Congress on the theme of the world encounter. A separate congress for children and young people, expected to draw 1,000 people, will be held at the same time.

On Saturday, January 25 Eucharistic celebrations will be held for diverse language groups in 16 churches in Manila. That same afternoon there will be the encounter of witnessing and testimonials and the festival of families, including a live television linkup with Pope John Paul in Rome, who will address the families present in Manila. Cardinal Lopez Trujillo will preside at the concluding Eucharistic celebration on Sunday, January 26.

Holy See celebrates twentieth anniversary of new Code of Canon Law

Rome, 22 (NE) Celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the promulgation of the new Code of Canon Law, the Pontifical Council for Legislative will hold an academic day next January 24. The theme of the event, as it was informed, is "Twenty years of canonical experience 1983-2003". The day will be celebrated in the New Synod Hall in the Vatican and will be presided by Cardinal Angelo Sodano, secretary of State. After Archbishop Julian Herranz, president of the dicastery, greets participants, the deans of the seven faculties of Canon Law in Rome will speak. In the late morning, the Holy Father will receive participants in audience.

January 11

Holy Father received participants in congress of North American College of Rome

Rome, 11 (NE) Pope John Paul II received yesterday participants in a congress organized by the North American College of Rome in order to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the dedication of the seminary on the Janiculum and the inauguration of the 'Casa Santa Maria dell'Umilta' as a center of study for American priests in Rome.

Addressing the rector, the Pope said: "May this anniversary deepen your commitment to the College's continuing mission of training priests imbued with a deep sense of the universality of the Church and zeal for the spread of God's Kingdom both in your native land and throughout the world."

"Your meeting this year," he continued, "brings you back to Rome and the College, to cherished places where, with the idealism and generosity of youth, you once pledged yourselves to the pursuit of knowledge, wisdom and holiness for the service of God's people. At a time of difficulty and suffering for Catholics in the United States, I assure all of you of my prayerful solidarity".

"It is my fervent hope -the Holy Father further said- that these days of reflection, prayer and priestly fraternity will strengthen you in your noble vocation to be disciples of Jesus Christ, witnesses to the truth of his Gospel and shepherds completely committed to the renewal of his Church in faith, hope and love."

Pope encourages Work of the Holy Childhood

Rome, 11 (NE) Yesterday was made public a message of Pope John Paul II on occasion of the 160th anniversary of the Work of the Holy Childhood, currently present in 110 nations. Addressing missionary children, the Pope says: "You make an effort in so many ways to share the future of children forced to work and to ease the poverty of the disadvantaged; you express your solidarity with the anxieties and dramas of children, involved in the wars of adults, who are themselves the victims of the violence of war; you pray every day that your little friends who do not yet know Jesus may share the gift of faith which you have received."

After recalling the custom of the children of the Work of the Holy Childhood of going from house to house to announce the arrival of Christmas, the Pope emphasizes that "this commitment to evangelization and solidarity is not limited to a few weeks or to the Christmas season, but applies to our whole life. For this reason," he added, "I encourage you to respond generously to the numerous requests for help which come from poor nations."

"Let us pray," he adds, "that there may be more children who put not only a part but all of their life at the disposition of the Gospel. Let us also ask God to spread the charitable activity of the Missionary Childhood everywhere."

At the end of the message, the Pope writes that the children who are part of the Work of the Holy Childhood "take on the commitment of saying one Hail Mary every day" and he urges adults to pray a part of the Rosary. "The missionary rosary is very beautiful: the white decade is for the old Europe; the yellow decade for Asia; the green decade for Africa, the red decade for America and the blue decade for Oceania."

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