“Mr. President, I offer a word of welcome to you and Mrs. Bush, and to the distinguished delegation accompanying you…” Shattered by Parkinson’s, still bearing the effects of a being gutshot years earlier, the Holy Father soldiered on, delivering a warm welcome to U.S. President George W. Bush upon the occasion of his third visit.

John Paul II spoke in a weak voice of the universal desire for a viable Iraqui peace, expressed under the hope for an Iraqui head of state, and especially as influencing peace in the Holy Land with independent Palestinian authority. Terrorism has changed the means of achieving peaceful relations between states, especially after the “dark day in the history of humanity” which was 9-11, as the Holy Father noted.

Civic and religious duty calls for acknowledging the need for, and Bush’s commitment to, to bringing security and rights for all nations, including various African countries. The Holy Father wished for a fuller and deeper understanding between the United States of America and Europe.

His final words, “God bless America,” were forceful and sincere.

“A devoted servant of God, John Paul II, has championed the cause of the poor, the hungry, the weak and the outcast. He has defended the unique dignity of human life, and the dignity of all life…He has given courage to others to “be not afraid.” Bush commended the Pope as “a hero of our time” and as one who helped topple Communism.

“May the desire for freedom and peace among the people of the whole world, symbolized by this medal, inspire men and women everywhere, and in every time and place.” And John Paul II reiterated, “God bless America!”

In a public statement, John Paul II urged the normalization of the situation in Iraq, opposed as the Vatican has been to Iraqui liberation. John Paul II noted that Bush and the Vatican concur in their opposition to that degradation of human life which is abortion. “God bless America!”