Evening star., 1941-06-30
War Is Punishment
For Mankind S Sins,
Pope Tells World
Peace and Hope to Follow
TrioIs, He Says; Silent
On Nuzi-Red Conflict
partial Tert OF Pope'S Address
on Page B-12.J
IL the ASSocis ted Press.

By the ASSCclspeo PTeSs.
VATICAN CITY, June 3o-In q .
Sunday message broadcast to the.
world. Pope Plus XII attributed the
sufferings of war to Divine Proyt-e
dence Furnishing the sins of man
kind, but said the fierce intensity.s
of the trial" would be followed by 2
new era of peace and hope.
The holy father made no specific
mention of the RuSSian-Germans
conflict, but spoke of the sufferings
from war at the fighting front and
behind the lines-from bombs, ma .
chine-gun bullets, blockade and I,
counterblockade, and from persecu- {
tions endured because Of religious
faith.
The Pope advised Catholics to |,
trust in God and said that means (,
believing that God can permit at {
times here below for some time !
pre-eminence of atheism and i'm !,
piety, the lamentable obscuring of a !
sense of justice, the violation of law, )
the tormenting of innocent, peace
full, undefended. helpless men," :
"God Will Disperse Hurricane" :
at means" he said, "believing !
that God at times thus lets trials
befal individuals and peoples, trials
of which the malice of men is the
instrument In a design Of justice
directed toward the punishment OF
sin, towards purifying persons and
| peoples through the eXpiations Of
this present life and bringing them
| back by this war to himself, but 1t
| means believing at the same time
that this justice always remains
here below the justice of a Father
| inspired and dominated by love. -
| 1T means believing finally that
the fierce intensity of this trial, like
the triumph of evil will endure even
here below only for a fixed time and
not longer; that the hour of God
will come, the hour Of mercy. the
! hour of holy rejoicing, the hour Of
the new canticle of liberation, the
hour of exultation and JOY - the
hour in which, after having let the
hurricane loose for a moment on
humanity, the all-powerful hand Of
the Heavenly Father with an i'm
perceptible motion will detain it ana
diSperse it and, by ways little known
to the mind or to the hopes Of mens
justice, calm and peace will be re-
stored to the nations"
He said men, however, were wont
to Judge as evil "all the physical
mishaps of this earth" and declared
They have forgotten that sufferz
ing stands at the threshold of lifep
as the way that leads to the smiles
of the cradle. - They have for
gotten that the cross is frequently
| a gift of God, -"
The Pontfff urged Catholics TO
regard the cross as comfort and SAL
vation and to remember that there
is no living in the love Of Christ
without suffering"
BIocksdes Declared Evil.
Among the trials of war the Pope
mentioned peoples overthrown or
fallen into the abyss Of disasters;
human bodies torn by bombs or by
machine-gun fire." the wounded and
sick, prisoners and the innocent and
peace-loving left behind. Evil, too,
he said, were 'fblockades and coun-
ter-blockades" from which in some
places famine in all its horror
makes its presence felt"
He spoke also of "indescribable
suffering, pain and persecution
which Catholic priests and layfolk
''in some places endure for the name
of Christ because of their religion"
The Pope extended his blessing
to the whole world after first bles%
ing Rome with the words: -
ITO thee before all goes our bless
ing, for we know that thou wilt not.
in this hour, in thy serene strength
and exercise of good, deny the faith
which has made thee mistress of the
world and majestic to nations where
Christian culture obtains"