VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXII - # 191   
   DATE 29-10-2015   
      
   Summary:   
   - Audience with the president of Lithuania: greater solidarity between nations   
   - Transmitting Christian hope: the Pope receives the participants in the 6th   
   World Congress of Radio Maria   
   - Programme of Pope Francis' visit to Prato and Florence   
   - Message from Cardinal Tauran to the Religions for Peace European Assembly:   
   from fear to trust   
   - Audiences   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audience with the president of Lithuania: greater solidarity between nations   
    Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father Francis received   
   in   
   audience Dalia Grybauskaite, president of the Republic of Lithuania, who   
   subsequently met with Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied   
   by   
   Archbishop Paul Richard Gallagher, secretary for Relations with States.   
    During the cordial discussions appreciation was expressed for the positive   
   contribution of the Catholic Church to Lithuanian society. Attention then   
   turned   
   to a number of themes of common interest, such as European integration, the   
   need   
   for greater solidarity between nations to face various current challenges, the   
   reception of migrants in Europe, peace and security at regional and   
   international level, the conflict in Ukraine, and the situation in the Middle   
   East, with particular reference to Syria and the Holy Land.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Transmitting Christian hope: the Pope receives the participants in the 6th   
   World Congress of Radio Maria   
    Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) - This morning the Pope received in the   
   Sala Clementina the participants in the Radio Maria 6th World Congress, taking   
   place in the shrine of Collevallenza, Italy from 25 to 30 October and attended   
   by the presidents and priests who direct the 75 Radio Maria broadcasters   
   throughout the world and the further six who will shortly become active.   
   Thousands of volunteers contribute to the running of Radio Maria, which has   
   around 30 million listeners worldwide.   
    Pope Francis began his address by commenting that ever since its creation the   
   aim of Radio Maria has been to help the Church in her task of evangelising, and   
   to do so in its own special way, "with closeness to the concerns and problems   
   of   
   the people, with words of consolation and hope, the fruit of faith and   
   commitment to solidarity. ... The spread of Radio Maria in many environments,   
   very   
   diverse in terms of culture, language and tradition, is good news for all as it   
   shows that, when we have the courage to propose high profile content from a   
   clearly Christian position, the initiative is well-received, beyond our best   
   predictions, and at times by those who thereby perhaps come into contact with   
   the message of the Gospel for the first time".   
    The Pope invited the members of Radio Maria to continue their work, trusting   
   in   
   Providence that has always enabled them to find the means to respond to their   
   daily needs regarding the modernisation of technologies and the development of   
   the radio station, which has spread rapidly and organically. "In this respect,   
   the challenge is to maintain your style of sobriety, while continuing to seek   
   suitable tools".   
    The work of Radio Maria has become "a true mission", which must be carried out   
   "with fidelity to the Gospel and to the Magisterium of the Church, and   
   listening   
   to society and to the people, especially the poorest and most marginalised, so   
   as to be a point of reference and a support to all your listeners. ... All   
   those   
   who listen to your radio programmes recognise you as a broadcaster that offers   
   ample space to prayer, demonstrating that when one opens up to prayer, one   
   opens   
   the door ... to the Lord. Your model in this is Our Lady. It is therefore   
   necessary to love Mary with your heart to live and feel in harmony with the   
   Church".   
    The Pope concluded by urging the directors "always to cultivate the inner   
   garden of prayer, of listening to the Word of God", and to seek out "good   
   readings, so as to deepen your faith. In other words, always be aware that you   
   give something great and unique: Christian hope, which is far more than a mere   
   spiritual consolation, since it is based on the power of the Resurrection,   
   witnessed with faith and works of charity".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Programme of Pope Francis' visit to Prato and Florence   
    Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) - The Holy See Press Office today made   
   public the programme of the Holy Father's visit to Prato and Florence, Italy on   
   10 November for the Fifth National Congress of the Italian Church.   
    The Pope will depart at 7 a.m. from the Vatican heliport and will arrive an   
   hour later at the municipal sports camp in Prato. From there he will transfer   
   to   
   the cathedral and will address workers from the square. At 9 a.m. he will   
   travel   
   by helicopter from Prato to Florence where, after arrival at the Luigi Ridolfi   
   stadium, he will visit the baptistery and will meet with the representatives of   
   the National Congress of the Italian Church in Piazza Santa Maria del Fiore. At   
   midday he will pray the Angelus and greet the sick in the Basilica della   
   Santissima Annunziata, after which he will lunch with the poor who attend the   
   San Francesco Poverino refectory. After celebrating Holy Mass in the Artemio   
   Franchi municipal stadium, the Holy Father will greet the authorities and   
   depart   
   for Rome at 5 p.m., where he is due to arrive around 6 p.m.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Message from Cardinal Tauran to the Religions for Peace European Assembly:   
   from   
   fear to trust   
    Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) - Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of   
   the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, has sent a message to the   
   participants in the Religions for Peace European Assembly, currently gathered   
   in   
   Castel Gandolfo to discuss the theme "Welcoming Each Other in Europe: from Fear   
   to Trust".   
    The cardinal mentioned the Assembly's concept paper, which underlines the   
   multiple challenges of today's Europe: fear of losing one's identity leading to   
   radicalism and fundamentalism, tendency to withdraw into oneself, xenophobia,   
   rising intolerance towards different religions and minorities and increasing   
   tides of forced migration due to wars, dictatorial regimes and ecological   
   crisis.   
    "How can we change fear into trust, discrimination into respect, enmity into   
   amity, polarisation into solidarity, a selfish lifestyle into a selfless one, a   
   throwaway culture into a caring culture, and confrontation into encounter and   
   dialogue? The true mission of religion is peace because religion and peace go   
   together. No true religious leader can ignore the culture of dehumanisation and   
   violence or preach and support it. We all agree that peace or violence and   
   trust   
   or fear come from the human heart. Prayer, spiritual practices, and actions for   
   justice and peace can awaken our hearts to overcome the polarised vision of   
   seeing our neighbour as another separate person. As religious leaders our   
   urgent   
   challenge today, is to transform distrust , suspicion, intolerance into a new   
   culture based on respect, mutual understanding, non-violence, solidarity and   
   peaceful conflict resolution. Since our spiritual patrimony is so great, let us   
   work together to remedy these social and cultural ills through dialogue and   
   cooperation".   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Audiences   
    Vatican City, 29 October 2015 (VIS) - Today, the Holy Father received in   
   audience:   
    - Yury Fedotov, executive director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and   
   Crime;   
    - Cardinal George Pell, prefect of the Secretariat for the Economy.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
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