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_WORLD WATCH______________________________
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Pope seeks stability
Response to national elections
Pope John Paul II met with the Italian bishops after they concluded their annual meeting in May and voiced his hopes that Italy’s national elections [see story, page 30] would lead to a period of stability and “harmony” after “a decade of marked contrasts and changes.”
The Holy Father also renewed his support for equal treatment of Catholic children in the Italian schools, for efforts to defend human life, and for solidarity with the poor and with immigrants. He thanked the Italian bishops for their pastoral efforts, and urged them to continue their efforts to awaken a society in which many people live “as if God did not exist.” He also emphasized the importance of pastoral work to defend and nourish family life.