JOHN PAUL II AND JUBILEE

To the participants of the annual meeting of the Assembly of Organisations for Aid to the Eastern Churches (ROACO). 19 July 1997

«I am pleased to draw the attention of ROACO and the Congregation of the Oriental Churches to another point. Several times in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente, I mentioned the Holy Land in connection with the various phases of the Great Jubilee. It has always enjoyed the special affection of the entire Church».

To the Bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Namibia. 14 June 1997

«I invite you to join the whole Church in preparing to cross the threshold of the third Christian millennium. I exhort you "to raise to the Lord fervent prayers to obtain the light and assistance necessary for the preparation and celebration of the forthcoming Jubilee… The Spirit will not fail to arouse enthusiasm and lead people to celebrate the Jubilee with renewed faith and generous participation (Tertio Millennio Adveniente, n. 59)»

From the discourse to the Pontifical College of Saint Peter Apostle. 14 June 1997

«Today, looking at these 50 years which constitute the second half of the 20th century, one thinks spontaneously: how many changes have there been in the world and in the Church! At the same time, on the threshold of the third millennium, as humanity appears more than ever in need of truth, justice and hope, the Church renews her unchanging message: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and for ever!"»

To the faithful in Croatian during the Wednesday General Audience. 18 June 1997

«The strengthening of faith and the testimony of Christians, which is the main objective of the Jubilee we are preparing for (cf. Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente, n.42), is aimed principally at offering all our contemporaries reasons to believe and hope, as well as to build a present and future for man, in agreement with God’s original project for humanity».

To the pilgrims in Croatian during the Wednesday General Audience. 25 June 1997

«The preparation for the celebration of the Great Jubilee must include every person, family and the entire ecclesial community, so that the life and work of the baptised is in agreement with the belief in Christ, only Saviour of man. It is therefore necessary to return to the origins of one’s faith, and to give new vitality to the hope that exceeds the horizons of this world, and to charity which knows no limits».

To the Synod of Bishops of the Armenian Catholic Church. 23 June 1997

«A common origin cannot fail to lead to a common commitment to a common witness. Moreover, the more unity is reinforced by historical and religious memory, the stronger and more convincing will be the proclamation of the Christ who died and rose, which you are already called to renew in our time, in view of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000».

To members of the Saints Peter and Paul Association to mark its 25th anniversary. 28 June 1997

«Dear Brothers and Sisters! Continue your generous work with the dedication you have always had. May the approach of the Great Jubilee increase your enthusiasm, because the Jubilee celebrations will demand an even greater commitment from you, especially with regard to guarding the Holy Door of the Vatican Basilica».

From the message to the faithful for the World Day of the Sick which will take place on 11 February 1998. 29 June 1997

«The mystery of the Incarnation is the work of the Spirit, who in the Trinity is "the Person-love, the uncreated gift… the eternal source of every gift that comes from God in order of creation, the direct principle and, in a certain sense, the subject of God’s self-communication in the order of grace" (Encyclical Dominum et Vivificantem, n. 50). The year 1998 is dedicated to him, the second year of immediate preparation for the Jubilee of the Year 2000. In this second year of preparation for the Jubilee, Mary must be contemplated and imitated "above all as the woman who was docile to the voice of the Spirit, a woman of silence and attentiveness, a woman of hope who, like Abraham, accepted God’s will, ‘hoping against hope’" (cf. Rm 4:18; Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente, n. 48). In declaring herself to be the servant of the Lord, Mary knew she was also placing herself at the service of his love for men. In a world lacerated by sufferings, contradictions, selfishness and violence, the believer lives in the awareness that "all creation moans and suffers until the present in birth pangs" (Rom 8,22) and takes on the commitment to be a witness to the risen Christ in word and deed.

For this reason, in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente, I invited believers to appreciate "the signs of hope present in the last part of this century, even though they often remain hidden from our eyes", and to pay special attention to the "scientific, technological and especially medical progress made in the service of human life" (n. 46). The successes achieved in overcoming diseases and relieving sufferings must not, however, lead us to forget the numerous situations in which the centrality and dignity of the human person are ignored and trampled upon, as occurs when health care is regarded in terms of profit and not as generous service, when the family is left alone to face health problems, or when the weakest groups in society are forced to endure the consequences of unjust neglect and discrimination.

"… what Saint Paul reminds the Christians in Corinth becomes a reality: "If one member suffers, all the members suffer together" (1 Cor 12,26).

As she prepares for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000, the Church is called to intensify her efforts to translate the communion suggested by the Apostle’s words into concrete projects. Dioceses, parishes and all communities in the Church should devote themselves to presenting the subjects of health and illness in the light of the Gospel; encourage the advancement and defence of life and the dignity of the human person, from conception until natural death; and make the preferential option for the poor and the marginalised concrete and visible - as regards the latter, the disabled, the chronically ill, the dying and those who are forced by political and social disorder to leave their land and live in precarious or even inhuman conditions should be surrounded with loving attention».

To the faithful in Croatian during the Wednesday General Audience. 2 July 1997

«To ensure that life and the work of Christians be always more in agreement with the Gospel, it is necessary to give new impetus to the catechesis of children, young people and adults. Indeed, like education to the faith, it tends to lead the baptised to the fullness of Christian existence at the time and in the environment each one is living. This is a constant need of the Church, today made even more evident by the preparations for the upcoming Jubilee celebrations».

To the members of the Circolo San Pietro. 21 June 1997

«As you know, the presentation of Mark’s Gospel to all Roman families began last Lent, within the framework of the great city mission. It is a pressing invitation to spiritual, cultural and social renewal addressed to all contexts of life in the metropolis, in order to prepare properly for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000...

Dear members of the Circolo San Pietro, I urge you to offer your qualified collaboration to this priority commitment of the whole diocesan community of Rome, with a view to the Jubilee».

From the Message to Monsignor Giulio Nicolini on occasion of the Year of Saint Omobono proclaimed by the Diocese of Cremona, to mark the eighth centenary of the death of the Patron. 16 July 1997

«…I learnt with pleasure that you, venerated Brother, have established to dedicate to your memory the period of time which goes from 13 November 1997 to 12 January 1999, naming it the "Year of Saint Omobono", to be celebrated with special spiritual, pastoral and cultural initiatives, to be co-ordinated in the path of preparation for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 and in the spirit of communion created by the Synod which the Diocese recently celebrated».

To a group of faithful from the Dioceses of Herzegovina. 27 June 1997

«A particular stimulus to your apostolic action, as well as that of your priests, always in agreement with the Bishop, comes from the prospect of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. The years of preparation for that historic event are marked for your people by the commitment to the material and spiritual reconstruction of your land from the ruins caused by the recently ended war and by the Communist dictatorship of the last five decades».

From the closing message at the second International Meeting of Priests in Yamoussoukro. 13 July 1997

«According to the spirit of the Letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente the days of Yamoussoukro are held in a Christological context: it’s thanks to the intimate union of the priest with Christ that divine mercy is spread across the world through the word and the sacraments».

From the reflection before the Marian prayer at the Pontifical Palace in Castelgandolfo. 20 July 1997

«In this year of preparation for the Great Jubilee in which we are invited to "turn with renewed interest to the Bible", in order to "recognise who Christ truly is" (Tertio Millennio Adveniente, n. 40) we pray that every Christian, and whoever is in search of the truth, may become "a pilgrim of Sacred Scripture", and learn to walk nourishing himself every day with the bread of the Word of Life».