HAPPY FEAST for the feast of St Francis Xavier on the 3rd of December
and for the Immaculate Conception on the 8th.
Last month we celebrated Thanksgiving. I thanked God for the wonders
of His creation, for the gift of life, for the bountiful resources our
world possesses and for His loving presence in our lives.
I pray that
He opens our hearts to be concerned about our neighbors and those who
are alone.
I prayed for the grace to share His goodness with those
whom I encounter each day.
Paris is an expensive city. I do a bit of window shopping and I get shocked at the prices. A sandwich of cheese and
ham costs 3 euros. A pair of spectacles costs 320 euros.
At the same
time there are so many beggars especially at the doors of the
churches. It is sad to see them trembling in the cold; I believe it is
a chain of Mafia that kidnap these poor people from their countries and
threaten to kill their relatives if they refuse to co-operate; The
French Government does a lot to reach out to their own poor by giving
free meals and shelter from the cold and those from foreign countries they
send back.
The Pope has completed his visit to Constantinople - a
nation in which the great majority of inhabitants is Muslim with a
very small percentage of Catholics. The invitation to dialogue was the
dominant note of his conversations and addresses.
The topic of human
rights and freedom of conscience was at the center of the
conversations. The same topic of dialogue was addressed at the meeting
with Muslim religious authorities.
During the farewell ceremony at the
close of his visit to Turkey, he said: 'I am leaving part of my heart
in Istanbul, in this magnificent city.' 'Turkey is a bridge between
Asia and Europe.' 'I want to thank each and every Turkish authority
for hosting me in the best possible way.'
The governor of Istanbul
thanked the Pope personally for 'his statements on Islam, which have
made us happy,' removing 'too many bad interpretations.'
On learning
that in 2010 the city will be the European capital of culture, the
Pope said: 'It truly deserves it' and explained with a smile that 'his
native city had requested that recognition, but was not granted it.'
Governor Guler invited the Pope to return to Istanbul, and the Holy
Father replied: 'I am old and I don't know how much time the Lord will
give me. We put everything in his hands.'
On 24th my French teacher
Madame Anne Florence took me to the Louvre Museum. The entrance ticket
is 9 euros but she has a free entrance and can take one person with her
free of cost. She promised to take me several times more to other
museums.
No more news for today,
Sr. Margaret Correa.
