Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: MONDAY, August 16, 1993 TAG: 9308160117
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: From The Washington Post and The Associated Press
DATELINE: DENVER LENGTH: Long
"The family especially is under attack. And the sacred character of human life denied," said the pope in a homily at a 3 1/2-hour outdoor Mass that capped the church's World Youth Day, a four-day event that drew young Catholics here from around the world.
"Young pilgrims, Christ needs you to enlighten the world and show it the `path to life,' " the pope said.
Later, in his farewell address at Stapleton International Airport, the pope said: "The culture of life means respect for nature and protection of God's work of creation. In a special way, it means respect for human life from the first moment of conception until its natural end."
As the pope spoke, Vice President Al Gore, who supports abortion rights, stood nearby. Gore didn't mention abortion in brief remarks before the pope spoke.
"Americans wish you could stay longer, gracing us with your message of hope," Gore had said.
Medical crews at the Mass site were overwhelmed as 14,000 people sought treatment during and after the hot, dusty service. Another 6,000 were treated Saturday afternoon and night as they converged on the site, Cherry Creek State Park, in the Denver suburb of Aurora. Most cases weren't serious, but one man died of a heart attack Saturday.
Throughout his four-day visit here, the pope has called Catholics to respect the church's moral teachings. He has condemned abortion, praised Pope Paul VI's 1968 encyclical against artificial birth control and warned church dissidents against resorting to "destructive criticism."
But mainly he has stressed the theme - particularly in Sunday's Mass - that modern society is menaced by murderous evil (especially abortion) and that it is largely up to young people to lead the fight to restore truth.
"I think the more the Holy Father stands against the values of contemporary society, the stronger the church is going to be," said Bernie Victory, 32, of Falls Church, Va., at the Mass Sunday. "Any compromise with contemporary values will weaken, rather than strengthen, the church."
Victory was in a group of 22 Virginians who had found space on a small rise with a clear view for the Mass of the pope and the Rocky Mountains, 30 miles away.
The 73-year-old pontiff spoke from an immense stage as rank-and-file Catholics, dressed for the outdoors in T-shirts, shorts and sneakers, mingled with nuns and an occasional Franciscan priest in ankle-length robes.
Flags identified clusters of Catholics from Germany, Mexico, France and many other nations.
In a portion of his prepared text that the pontiff did not read at the Mass, he described the products of this "culture of death." He listed "final solutions" (a reference to the Holocaust), "ethnic cleansings" (as in Bosnia-Herzegovina) and the killing of "human beings even before they are born."
Jewish leaders had protested when the Roman Catholic Church leader, during a 1991 trip to Poland, drew a parallel between abortion and the deaths of 6 million Jews in Nazi concentration camps during World War II.
The Vatican said through a spokeswoman that the pontiff dropped the remarks, as well as many other sections of his official text, to shorten the Mass. The worship service wound up lasting 3 1/2 hours.
To Catholic youth, he said, "the mission of proclaiming [Christianity] to the ends of the Earth is now passing to your generation."
Wosik Pawqel, 23, of the pope's native Poland, said abortion violates the commandments exhorting Christians to honor God and love their neighbors as themselves. "We believe abortion is wrong," Pawqel said.
Debra Dahl, 40, of Salt Lake City, Utah, said she agreed with some of what the pope said, but she supports the right to abortion.
"Do I think I'm a bad Catholic?" said Dahl. "No. And I don't think the parishioners of my church would think so, either."
The pope, who appeared tired when he arrived Thursday afternoon after appearances in Jamaica and Mexico's Yucatan Peninsula, seemed to gather strength over the weekend.
More and more, he departed from his prepared texts to engage in a kind of spontaneous dialogue with his huge audiences, responding to their cheers with humor, rhetorical questions or encouraging statements.
At times, he spoke with visible passion, gesturing with his hands and raising his voice for emphasis.
Sunday afternoon, in a Denver sports arena, the pope met with several thousand Vietnamese Catholics living in the United States. In remarks directed to "the entire Vietnamese people," he called for all to put aside past divisions and join in rebuilding a politically open country.
In another stop, he met with 60 children from Mount St. Vincent Home, an institution for children aged 5 to 14 with serious emotional problems.
The pontiff placed his hands on many of the children's heads and joked with them in an informal question-and-answer session. When one child asked what his favorite foods are, the pope responded, "I like what I see."
He held hands and sang with them. "May God give us hearts large enough to embrace all children everywhere, and arms strong enough to protect them and support them!" he said.
by CNB