VATICAN CITY - 13 March 2007 - 310 words
Holy
See delegation returns from Vietnam
A Holy See delegation led by Msgr Pietro Parolin, under-secretary
for Relations with States, yesterday returned to Rome after a
week-long visit to Vietnam.
During the visit, the delegation met with Bishop Paul Nguyen Van
Hoa of Nha Trang, president of the Episcopal Conference of Vietnam,
and with the Vietnamese government's permanent committee for religious
affairs which highlighted the role of the Catholic community in
the country.
The Holy See delegation expressed the hope that Catholics may
be able to make an ever greater contribution to the dissemination
of moral values, especially as regards the formation of young
people. And both sides, according to a press statement, "highlighted
the fact that outstanding problems can be faced and duly resolved
in mutual agreement, through patient and constructive dialogue."
The delegation also met various government figures with whom it
raised the question of the normalization of relations with the
Holy See. The Vietnamese authorities gave assurances that, following
the prime minister's instructions, "the competent bodies
are already at work, and certain concrete ways to begin the process
of establishing diplomatic relations have been examined."
Of particular importance was the visit to the diocese of Kontum,
in the country's central highlands, mostly made up of ethnic minorities,
the so-called "montagnards" who participated in ceremonies
organised for the delegation in large numbers.
"To everyone," the communique reads, "the delegation
brought the encouragement and blessings of the Holy Father, towards
whom the faithful showed signs of profound affection, filial devotion
and faithfulness, in the hope that Pope himself will one day be
able to make a pastoral visit to that country."
Source: VIS
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News 2007
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