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ADDRESS OF HIS HOLINESS
JOHN PAUL II 22 March 1979
Mr President, On the occasion of your meeting in Rome, you expressed the desire for this visit. I am happy to receive you. As leaders and members of the economic and social Committee of the European Communities or of the economic and social Councils of the member States, you are making an important contribution to this part of West Europe which is trying to live in a deeper symbiosis, at the level of its productions and its economic exchanges, its cultural heritage, its social realities and its juridical and political institutions. This articulation is a great project which merits esteem and encouragement and which gives rise in many people to hopes of progress, while at the same time raising difficult problems, which have deep repercussions on the life of the peoples. Those on whom decisions rest must clearly have at their disposal studies, opinions, suggestions, the advice of far-seeing experts. And you contribute to this to a great extent. What seems to me very appreciable is your concern and your possibility of associating the various responsible groups: entrepreneurs, workers, representatives of great economic and professional sectors. The Catholic Church, as such, has no competence in these technical fields. She rejoices to see brotherhood extend and the community take shape, in respect of the identity and freedom of each one. She wishes above all that the protagonists will not neglect any aspect of this vast human complex, that their ethics will be equal to their economic and social projects, that the rights of all parties will be taken into consideration, and that the fundamental institutions which guarantee social justice, family life, human and spiritual progress, will be promoted. It is in this spirit that I call the blessings of God on your work and on your persons. *L'Osservatore Romano. Weekly Edition in English n. 14 pp. 9, 10.
© Copyright 1979 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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