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Skriven 2005-03-03 11:02:50 av Marc Lewis (1:396/45)
Ärende: Vatican Information Service - Press Release
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              The following press release is Copyrighted by the
                        Vatican Information Service.
              ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
                               VIS-Press releases

TWO CARDINALS VISIT THE HOLY FATHER

VATICAN CITY, MAR 2, 2005 (VIS) - Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, prefect of the
Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, met yesterday with the Holy Father
for a brief work session in his room at Gemelli Hospital and, upon leaving,
spoke with journalists, telling them that the Pope "spoke to me in German and
Italian. He was very alert and will work on the material that I brought him. I
am very happy to see the Holy Father fully present mentally and capable of
saying a few essential things in his words."

The cardinal told the media that he had brought "greetings from the
Congregation for Divine Worship which is currently meeting in plenary session.
I also brought greetings from many others and even some work from our
congregation."

In remarks made to the German language program of Vatican Radio, Cardinal
Ratzinger spoke of the Holy Father's suffering:

"The example of a Pope who suffers is very important as we have seen in recent
years: suffering is a special way of preaching. From the many letters I have
received and also from direct personal witnesses, I have seen many suffering
people who now feel accepted. The Association for Parkinson's Patients has
written to me, thanking the Pope because he helps the ill to strengthen their
image, so to speak, because the Holy Father has the courage to appear in public
as a person who suffers and who continues to work. Through his suffering John
Paul II has communicated many things to us: that suffering is a phase on the
path of life, and that he participates in the passion of Jesus Christ, showing
us how fruitful suffering can be when we share it with the Lord and live it
together with all those who suffer in the world. In this way, suffering takes
on a great value and can be something positive. When we look at the Pope's
life, we see that this is an important message, especially in a world that
tends to hide or even erase pain."

Cardinal Cormac Murphy O'Connor, archbishop of Westminster, England, visited
the Holy Father this morning. The cardinal told journalists that "in health or
in sickness, in great strength or in weakness, the Pope is offering a witness
of faith to the Lord and to his extraordinary mission in today's world."
.../POPE HEALTH/RATZINGER:MURPHY O'CONNORVIS 050302 (400)

SUMMARY

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