Truth of the Spirit with Patti Brunner reads to you the encouraging Pope’s Letter to Women written by Saint Pope John Paul II. This wonderful letter was written to all women during 1995. It often quotes Saint Pope John Paul II’s apostolic letter “The Dignity of a Woman”. The “Letter to Women” was written in prelude to the United Nations World Conference on Women held in Beijing. For audio and video links plus a link to the pope’s letter please continuing reading below.
www.PatriarchMinistries.com/176
I recently began studying with young mothers a letter St. Pope John Paul II wrote to women and the Lord asked me to read it and comment on it to you. Like most things that the visionary saint wrote, it continues to be an important message for all people for all times. It reminds me of some of the points he made in his Theology of the Body series of 129 lectures. They were given by Pope John Paul II during his Wednesday audiences. His series constitutes an analysis on human sexuality. I still believe if the world could comprehend that information and live it, the world would return to God like Hosea’s prostitute wife returned to him.
St. Pope John Paul II wrote this Letter to Women in 1995 in light of the UN’s World Conferences on Women. In 1995 they planned to consider choosing abortion as an acceptable form of birth control and this letter from St. Pope John Paul II kept them from doing that. In 2018 the “the U.N. Human Rights Committee adopted General Comment No. 36, a document expounding on article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. Article 6 posits that every human being “has the inherent right to life” and that this right “shall be protected by law.” However, on September 7, 2021 a UN committee representative called the recent Texas Law restrictions to protect life of children with a heartbeat as “discriminatory” towards women. I now see why the Lord wanted you to hear the pope’s message again! His letter is about respecting the dignity of women. Although it came from the international leader of the Church it is not doctrine or dogma; it is a love letter to women and thus all mankind. It also becomes an examination of conscience for the world of the past and of the present.
Welcome to Truth of the Spirit. I’m your host Patti Brunner. As I read to you the Pope’s Letter to Women, I will pause, minimally, to comment to clarify a phrase. I read this to you for your education of the great thoughts of this holy saint 25 years after these amazing words were written. The letter was made public by the Vatican and is still available on their website.
Link: Letter to Women (June 29, 1995)
www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/letters/1995/documents/hf_jp-ii_let_29061995_women.html1995/06/28
Copyright © Libreria Editrice Vaticana
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Saint Pope John Paul II quotes from his apostolic letter “The Dignity of a Woman”. Link: Mulieris Dignitatem (1988).
St. Pope John Paul II shares about the genius of women then he shares a bit about Holy Mother Mary from his apostolic letter “the Dignity of a Woman” published on the feast of the Assumption, 15 August 1988, during the Marian Year.
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St. Pope John Paul II quoted a line from his 1995 World Day of Peace Message. Link: XXVIII World Day for Peace 1995, Women: teachers of peace
www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/messages/peace/documents/hf_jp-ii_mes_08121994_xxviii-world-day-for-peace.html1994/12/07
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FYI, Pope Paul VI introduced the phrase “Civilization of Love” to the world on Pentecost Sunday 1970.
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Pope St. John Paul II gave a series of talks that centered on the Theology of the Body; there have been several books written to share his message and to unpack it. I have used Christopher West’s books and video several times to share Theology of the Body with study groups.
You’ve been listening to the Pope’s Letter to Women, repeated by Truth of the Spirit. We invite you to comment on the Pope’s letter and to watch other episodes of Truth of the Spirit on our YouTube channel. And then come back for more. With the Holy Spirit there’s always more! Amen.
FYI the study we are doing is “Letter to Women Study Guide to John Paul II’s Letter Addressing Women” by Endow. It was originally published 2009 and updated several times, the one we are using was published 2020.
