POPE MEETS YOUTH IN SOLIN

( Editorial: --> 5692 ) SPLIT, Oct 4 - Later this afternoon, the Pope John Paul II met the youth, catechists, teachers and church movement representatives in Solin, on the Isle of Our Lady. Before the Pope met the youth, he was greeted by the parish priest and the sanctuary head Father Vinko Sanader, as the song "Christ on the Shore" resounded in the background. Christ's representative on earth prayed in front of the little church on the isle, at the very spot where Croatian monarchs were buried, including Queen Jelena. On the islet on the river Jadro, which is often associated with the beginnings of Christianity in Croatia, the Pope was cordially greeted by more than 35,000 young people to which this meeting was dedicated. Split-Makarska Archbishop Ante Juric climbed onto the stage and presented the Pope with a stole embroidered with an ancient Croatian decorative pattern. The public reacted enthusiastically to this by applauding and chanting "Pope, Pope!" Host Archbishop Juric then addressed St Peter's successor, with a particular feeling for the holy soil of Solin (Salona) and the Isle of Our Lady. He stressed that this was a ground made holy from ancient Christian times, sanctified by the blood of so many Christians who were lead by their bishop, the martyr St Domnius. "It was around this island on the river Jadro that our ancestors began to be baptised. We call it Jadro because it is our Croatian Jordan. It was on this island that our good Queen Jelena, who is remembered for her holy life, built the first church in Croatia that was consecrated to the Mother of God," Archbishop Juric said. He emphasised that this dear original sanctuary of Our Lady, which guards the memories of our Christian and national sacred traditions, and which has seen and remembered in its long history so many wonderful people and has been engraved by their names, will remember and engrave in letters of gold the name of its great visitor to date, Pope John Paul II. "Holy Father, in the name of all those present I ask you to teach us, encourage us, bless us and thus reaffirm our faith, strengthen our hope and increase our love," were the Split-Makarska Archbishop's greeting words. "The Holy Spirit will come upon you and you will be my witnesses," said the Holy Father at the beginning of his address in Solin, and continued, "these words which Christ spoke before returning to the Father have been chosen as the motto of my pastoral visit which is now nearing its end. They are words which have resounded here since apostolic times; and still today they retain all their force thanks to the working of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of the men and women in Croatia." On the Solin's Our Lady of the Isle sanctuary, the Pope said: "This place has a unique position in the history of Croatian Catholics and the Croatian nation. Here is the wellspring of your identity; here are your deep Christian roots. This is the place which bears witness to the faithfulness of the Catholics of this region to Christ and to the Church." He then greeted his host, the Split-Makarska Archbishop Ante Juric, Cardinals Franjo Kuharic and Vinko Puljic, other bishops, clergy, monks and nuns, teachers and professors and the ecclesiastical movements representatives. He particularly greeted the youth, mentioning Blessed Alojzije Stepinac as an "example of Christian witness. He preferred prison to freedom, in order to defend freedom and unity of the Church". Then the Pope addressed the following four groups: representatives of lay church associations and movements, teachers and professors, catechists and religion instructors, and finally youth. He encouraged the representatives of church associations and movements to promote "healthy pluralism of types of association, shunning all exclusives, in order to give rooms to the charisms which the Holy Spirit distributes unceasingly to the Church". The Pope expects them to "sustain the Communion of the Church under the guidance of the Bishop". He quoted St. Ignatius of Antioch: "Episcopo attendite, ut et Deus vobis attendit" ("Stand by the Bishop, and God will stand by you"). He urged the teachers and professors to not only offer young people an insight in the different branches of knowledge, but to also help them to seek the meaning of life in the right direction. "To invest in the formation of the younger generation is to invest in the future of the Church and the Nation. Without a sound formation of the younger generation there can be no reassuring prospects for the future of either the local Church or the Nation," said the Pope. Finally, and most importantly, the Pope addressed the youth: "The future is in your hands: your own future, but also the future of the Church and the Nation." Quoting Croatian poet Marko Marulic: "Felix, qui semper vitae bene computat usum" (Happy is the one who always contemplates on the good use of life), the Pope said that it was vital to choose true values, not those which pass, to choose genuine truth, not half-truths or pseudo-truths. "Do not trust those who promise you easy solutions. Nothing great can be built without sacrifice." At the end of the meeting, the Pope sang along to the song "Heavenly Virgin, the Queen of Croats". "Your bishops are very pleased. So is the Pope," were his farewell words to the youth after they finished the song. He bid them good night in the Croatian language. The Pope was approached and greeted by the members of the Solin Papal Visit Preparation Committee. The Pope bowed to Our Lady of the Vow while the youth sang "Hallelujah". The Croatian cardinals and bishops were present at the Pope's prayer meeting with the youth at the Isle of Our Lady. (Hina) is/mbr 042134 MET oct 98