Pope praises longtime Vatican diplomat at funeral

Published: 2004-02-13

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- The late Cardinal Opilio Rossi's service as a Vatican diplomat in Germany during World War II led him to try to teach young people the evils of hatred, Pope John Paul II said. The pope gave the homily at the Feb. 13 funeral Mass for the longtime Vatican diplomat and curial official who died Feb. 9 at the age of 93. Pope John Paul said that serving in Berlin during the war, the cardinal worked "on behalf of many suffering brothers and sisters, reinforcing their courage and increasing their faith and Christian hope." Throughout the rest of his life, the pope said, "he worked to transmit these experience to new generations. In fact, he was persuaded that young people must learn an important lesson from the history of the 20th century: that from hatred, despising others, violence and exaggerated nationalism, flow only tears and blood."

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