Pope John's 'Mater et Magistra"...

An International Conference sponsored by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace took place here in the Vatican this past week to coincide with the 50th anniversary of Blessed Pope John's encyclical."Mater et Magistra".

To mark this event Veronica Scarisbrick brings us the words of a Dominican Professor of Catholic Social teaching at the Pontifical University of Saint Thomas here in Rome pertaining to this document.

He's Professor Alejandro Crosthwaite who explains how : "..by 1961..the winds of Vatican II are already blowing and so the vision of John XXIII to open the church to the world .. "

It was in this encyclical he says that this pope begins to talk about the global church, highlighting the gap between north and south, between rich and poor. But also the need for wealthier countries to help support developing nations...

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