Pope reminds female prison guards to uphold human dignity

Published: 2004-09-27

CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy (CNS) -- Upholding human dignity must lie at the heart of all professions, but especially for prison guards, Pope John Paul II said. "Every civil, professional and work training ethic must have at its foundation the primary value of the human person," the pope told some 400 representatives from Italy's prison guard system. He made his address Sept. 27, the feast of St. Vincent de Paul, whom the pope said "personally suffered the harshness of prisons." St. Vincent taught his followers to "pay special attention to that category of poor people known as convicts," said the pope. "He asked them to show understanding and to demand humane treatment" for prisoners. Part of the group who met with the pope at his apostolic palace in Castel Gandolfo included female prison guards who had just completed a year of training. The pope had special words for them, urging them to take care of their spiritual lives. "Your work calls for a solid human maturity that allows you to wed firmness with attention to the individual," he said. "To this end, being women certainly helps you," since women possess qualities that benefit "interpersonal relationships," said the pope.

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