Pope John Paul's catechetical message today concentrated in the ecumenical impact of devotion to the Mother of God, the "mother of unity and hope."
The Virgin Mary has always been a model of Christian holiness, the Pope said. He argued that non-Catholic Christians could readily benefit from the teachings of the Church about Mary as the model of Christian life, and about her role in the history of salvation. He expressed great pleasure in the fact that many Protestant groups are taking a renewed interest in Mary, and recognizing her role in the universal Church. That development, he said, "cannot help but bring us closer together and give a new perspective on the divisions which have caused so much suffering."
As for the Eastern churches, the Pope noted that Marian devotion is already strong among the Orthodox. In fact, he observed that the title "Mother of God" reflects a development that began among Eastern theologians, before the Great Schism divided the Church. Although the more recent doctrinal formulations regarding the Immaculate Conception and the Assumption have not been formally endorsed by the Orthodox churches, the Holy Father pointed out that many Orthodox believers embrace those doctrines.
At the beginning of his appearance in the Paul VI auditorium, the Holy Father made a hoarse announcement that he had temporarily lost his voice-- evidently as the result of some minor illness. The Vatican has made no announcement regarding the Pope's health.
Despite obvious difficulties in speaking, the Pope did make an effort to greet pilgrims from different countries, using a variety of languages including English, German, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Lithuanian, Czech, Slovenian, and Polish as well as Italian. As the audience closed, he allowed his assistants to lead the recitation of the Lord's Prayer, then delivered his papal blessing-- but he used his speaking voice to do so, rather than chanting the blessing as he usually does.