AAS 70 [1978] - El Vaticano

842 Acta Apostolicae Sedis - Commentarium Officiale
II
A CONSILIO OECUMENICO ECCLESIARUM
On behalf of the World Council of Churches we hasten to express
our profound shock on hearing of the sudden passing away of His
Holiness Pope John Paul I and our deepest sympathy to the Roman
Catholic family in this time of mourning for truly humble man of God.
Pope John Paul will long be remembered for his open-hearted simplicity,
his spontaneous warmth, his quickness of mind and action, his pastoral
concern for all, especially the poor and needy and above all his utter
commitment to Christ and his Church. The promise of his pontificate
was that he would deploy these gifts of the Spirit to continue to work
for the renewal of the Church, for the proclamation in word and deed
of the good news of salvation, for promoting dialogue with people of
all faiths and cultures, for pursuing peace and justice in the world
and for working without hésitation for the unity of ali God's people,
according to our Lord's pray er as a sign and sacrament of the unity
of ali peoples. It was this mandate to which Pope John Paul gave
himself with gracious abandon and in the knowledge of the prayers
of all Christians and of the grace and power of God. He had already
shown signs both by his personal conversations with leaders of Churches
and of the World Council and by his actions during his all too brief
pontificate that he was particularly eager to facilitate closer coopération
in common witness bëtween the Roman Catholic Church and other com­
munions. We give thanks to God for a great pastor who in his steadfast
and immovable faith was always abounding in the work of the Lord.
We pray that in the communion of the saints this faith and work in
the Lord will guide and govern the life and witness of the Roman
Catholic Church and of ali Churches for the sake of the world for
which Christ died and rose again.
Edward W. Scott
Moderator of the Central Committee
Philip A. Potter
General Secretary
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