A translation of the full text of the Holy Father's Angelus message today has been posted in AUDIENCE AND ANGELUS TEXTS.
What the Pope said in English today:
I greet all the English-speaking visitors gathered for this Angelus prayer on New Year’s Day.
On this, the Octave of Christmas, the Church honours Mary, the ever-virgin Mother of God, whose complete openness to God’s saving plan bore fruit in the birth of the Prince of Peace.
May the peace proclaimed by the angels at Bethlehem take ever deeper root in men’s hearts, and inspire the whole human family to live in harmony, justice and fraternal solidarity.
To you and your families I offer cordial good wishes for a happy New Year!
Pope Affirms Family
as Agent of Peace
VATICAN CITY, JAN. 1, 2008 (Zenit.org)- The family is the principle agent of peace, and whoever disrupts the family, disrupts peace, says Benedict XVI.
The Pope said this today before reciting the midday Angelus together with the crowds gathered in St. Peter's Square on the World Day of Peace. "We have begun a new year," he said, "and I wish that it will be for all peaceful and prosperous."
The Holy Father spoke first of solemnity of Mary, the Mother of God, which the Church celebrates Jan. 1: "In Bethlehem, in the fullness of time, Jesus was born of Mary: The Son of God was made man for our salvation, and the Virgin truly became Mother of God. This immense gift that Mary received was not reserved only for her, but for us all."
"It is in the name of Mary, Mother of God and of mankind," continued the Holy Father, "that for the past 40 years, on the first day of the year, the Church has celebrated the World Day for Peace."
Benedict reflected on this year's theme for the world day: "The Human Family, Community of Peace."
He said: "The same love that builds and maintains unity in the family, the vital building block of society, favors these relationships of solidarity and of collaboration among the peoples of the earth, that are members of the single human family."
The Pope affirmed that "there is a close relationship, therefore, among family, society and peace." Quoting his message for the World Day of Peace, he added, "Whoever, even unknowingly, circumvents the institution of the family, undermines peace in the entire community, national and international, since he weakens what is in effect the primary agency of peace."
In a prayer to Mary, Mother of the Prince of Peace and all mankind, the Pontiff asked the Virgin to help the Church in its service for peace, and aid all nations "to begin on a path of authentic solidarity and of stable peace."
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Reuters filed this wrap-up story on the Pope's New Year's Day events the next day:
Pope says family
is key to world peace
ROME, Jan. 2 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict XVI ushered in the New Year by criticising policies that undermine the traditional family, saying they eroded one of the most important foundations for peace in the world.
The Catholic Church celebrates January 1 as World Day of Peace, and the pope used a midmorning Mass and a window appearance before thousands of faithful in St Peter's Square to mark the occasion.
The Pontiff, delivering the traditional New Year prayer for peace, appeared to take a swipe at efforts in several countries to grant legal recognition to gay and unwed couples - although he did not single out any policies by name.
He said the traditional family led by a husband and wife instilled values that promote peace, and added it was an "irreplaceable" institution.
"Those who are hostile, even unknowingly, to the institution of the family ... make peace fragile for the entire national and international community," the Pope told crowds gathered in a sunny St Peter's Square.
The German-born Benedict has made defending the traditional family a priority since being elected Pontiff in 2005 following the death of John Paul II, focusing much of his attention on Europe.
Gay marriage is legal in several European countries including predominantly Catholic Spain, where hundreds of thousands of Catholics rallied on Sunday in favour of the traditional family. The Pontiff had addressed the Spanish rally via a live video-link.
Speaking at St Peter's Basilica, the leader of the world's 1.1 billion Roman Catholics urged followers to reject challenges to the family "eclipsing the truth of man".
"I wanted to shed light on the direct relationship that exists between the family and peace in the world," the Pope said.
"The family is the primary agent of peace and the negation or even the restriction of rights of the family ... threatens the very foundations of peace."
Quoting from a message he issued in December to mark the Church's World Day of Peace on January 1, Benedict said the family was "the first and irreplaceable educator of peace".
He also said that if the world wanted to live in peace, it would need to recognise those universal values that all people share as part of a single, "human family".
After leading the Mass at St Peter's Basilica, the 80-year-old pope, dressed in ornate white and gold vestment, waved and smiled from his studio window to pilgrims gathered in the square.
An annual peace march organised by the Catholic charity Sant'Egidio brought some 20,000 people to the famous square to hear the New Year's Day Angelus.
The charity sponsored similar events were held in at least 65 countries.
[Modificato da TERESA BENEDETTA 02/01/2008 22:06]