Sri Lanka felicitates Pope John Paul II
[October
16, 2003 -
10.45
GMT]
 The over one billion
Catholics of the world today celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the papacy of
His Holiness Pope John Paul II.
President
Chandrika
Kumaratunga
and the Christian Affairs Minister sent greetings to the Holy Father.
Minister John Amaratunga in his message said, “Christian community of Sri
Lanka joins me in felicitating this rare achievement in the Papal history”.
Pope John Paul II the 264th successor of St. Peter is the longest
reigning Pope of this century. In his Petrine Ministry he has canonized
nearly 300 saints and has visited over 100 countries sharing the message of
peace.
The
Pope visited Sri Lanka - where Catholics are 7% of the total population - in
January 1995 during his 63rd oversees tour. He celebrated holy
mass with a large flock of devotees at the Galle Face promenade in Colombo
and also beatified the Goan missionary Fr.
Joseph Vas who worked in Sri Lanka
during the
Dutch period.
In June 2002
President Kumaratunga was privileged with an
official audience
with Pope John Paul II.
The
National celebration for the Silver Jubilee was held on Saturday October 11,
at the National Basilica Tewatte.
Ministry of Christian Affairs will issue a first day cover and a stamp
as part of its programme to honour the Pontiff.
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Last Updated
Date: October 16, 2003 -11.00
GMT. |
