| Build an ever more peaceful society
After celebrating Mass in St Peter's
Square [19 November 2000] for thousands of members of the armed forces
and the police from many countries, the Holy Father introduced the
recitation of the Angelus, expressing his appreciation for their work
and his awareness of the difficulties they and their families encounter.
The Pope stressed that "it is not easy to be a soldier's family, because
even the hardships of his mission must be shared", telling them that
"the work and sacrifice of all of you help to ensure the peace and
security of individuals and societies." Here is a translation of his
reflection, which was given in Italian, French, English, German,
Spanish, Portuguese and Polish.
At the end of this Jubilee celebration, dear Members of the Armed
Forces and the Police, my thoughts turn in particular to your
relatives.
In the Book of the Acts of the Apostles, an account is given of St
Peter's visit to the centurion Cornelius, "a devout man who feared God
with all his household" (Acts 10: 2). He accepted the proclamation of
Christ's Gospel by Peter, to whom he gave hospitality for several days,
and received Baptism together with his family members. Thus the first
pagans to be baptized by Peter were members of a soldier's family. It is
significant to remember this today, in the context of your Jubilee.
It is not easy to be a soldier's family, because even the hardships of
his mission must be shared. Yet the family is the principal support of
each one of you, committed to defending peace and life. One defends what
one loves and where does one learn to love peace and life if not in the
family? Therefore, dear families, feel fully involved in this mission
and collaborate in safeguarding justice and peace.
2. On this day when you have come to make a Jubilee act with your
families, I cordially greet you all, members of the armed forces and of
the police of Belgium, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Croatia, France,
Luxembourg, Romania, Slovenia, Canada, the Netherlands and Slovakia. May
this important time be an opportunity for you to strengthen your mission
in order to continue the important service you carry out, attentive to
the needs of all your compatriots, to build an ever more peaceful and
fraternal society! I hail your sense of responsibility, efforts and
commitments, and pray with you for all who died or were injured while
carrying out their activities. With my Apostolic Blessing!
I greet the English-speaking participants in this Jubilee celebration
for Members of the Armed Forces and Police, especially those from
Australia, Canada, Great Britain, Ireland, Korea, Malawi, the
Philippines and the United States of America. A particular greeting also
goes to the representatives of the peace-keeping force in the Balkans,
made up of military personnel from 38 countries.
The work and sacrifice of all of you help to ensure the peace and
security of individuals and societies. I pray that you yourselves will
always be kept safe as you fulfil your professional duties, and that the
divine gifts of wisdom and strength will ever accompany you in the
service of your own countries and of your fellow men and women. Upon you
and your families, I invoke the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus
Christ.
I extend a warm greeting to the German-speaking soldiers and police.
Welcome to the Eternal City, soldiers and police from Germany, Austria,
Switzerland, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Hungary. Your work is in
the front line at the service of security and peace. Carry out this duty
with high responsibility and sensitivity! May God's Blessing accompany
you on the way of peace.
I now extend a greeting to the soldiers and police forces of Argentina,
Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, El Salvador, Paraguay, Peru, Spain, Bolivia,
Guatemala, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Mexico and
Panama. I encourage you to collaborate generously in the honourable task
of establishing peace, cooperation and coexistence among all peoples.
May God bless you in your family and professional life so that you may
give proof of adherence to Christ and his Church. Thank you very much.
I greet the soldiers and members of the forces of public security from
Brazil, Mozambique and Portugal, imploring divine wisdom on your noble
missions so that, despite the risk, you will be able to transmit peace
and confidence to your close relatives and fellow citizens.
I cordially greet the representatives of the Polish army and police
force present here. This Jubilee meeting with the soldiers of the whole
world is an event that shows in a particular way how the army does not
necessarily have to be the protagonist of the tragic events of war but
can and must be the protector and messenger of peace. I pray that the
difficult service of the army and the police for the protection of the
security of people and nations may always be distinguished by deep
sensitivity to suffering and to the needs of the weakest, and that it
may be rewarded by the gratitude of societies and by God's blessing.
3. At this time of profound communion, enriched with the Jubilee grace,
I would like to raise my prayer to the Lord for your many colleagues
who have died in these years during various missions of peace and in
the defence of law and order. May their sacrifice not have been in vain!
May their hidden and silent witness be an encouragement to everyone not
to be resigned to injustice, but to conquer evil with good! May God
welcome them into his kingdom of peace and grant serenity and comfort to
their families and to all their loved ones.
Let us entrust to the motherly intercession of Mary Most Holy our
intense and prayerful invocation for the living and the dead.
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