MESSAGE OF THE HOLY FATHER JOHN PAUL II 
TO THE MEMBERS OF THE "PAPAL FOUNDATION" 

Tuesday, 2 May 2000

To the Members of the Papal Foundation

The religion which originates in the mystery of the Redemptive Incarnation is the religion of dwelling in the heart of God, of sharing in God’s very life (cf. Tertio Millennio Adveniente, 8). And the heart of God, the life which he communicates to us through the Incarnation, Death and Resurrection of his beloved Son is none other than the loving kindness and mercy of the Father who wishes to gather all his scattered children into the communion of the one body of Christ, the Church. The Jubilee Year 2000 is a “year of the Lord’s favor”, in which the whole Church must seek to bear ever more authentic witness to Christian love and solidarity.

It is in this context that I rejoice at your presence here during the Jubilee Year. The Papal Foundation, from its beginning, has been instrumental in making it possible for the Successor of Peter to respond to some of the more urgent calls for charitable intervention, especially in developing countries. Your desire to share my “concern for all the Churches” comforts me and sustains me in the ministry which the Lord has given me. For this I am very grateful, and wish to express this gratitude in fervent prayer for you and your loved ones.

In this special year of grace which opens the Third Christian Millennium, I commend the members of the Papal Foundation to the love of the Most Blessed Trinity. Inundated by the splendor of the Resurrection, may your hearts be filled with serene joy, because “the brightness of the eternal King has vanquished the darkness of the world” (Easter Proclamation). Upon all of you I cordially invoke the intercession of Mary, Mother of the Redeemer, and gladly impart my Apostolic Blessing.

From the Vatican, May 2, 2000

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