Religion: THE POPE SPEAKS

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Communication. "Away with the barriers! Break down the barbed-wire fences! Let each people be free to know the life of the other people; let that segregation of some countries from the rest of the civilized world, so dangerous to peace, be abolished."

Families. "Amidst the most damaging aberrations of modern pagans is the opinion of those who define fecundity as a social evil." Enumerating the blessings of having many children, the Pope added: "No sooner are the happy pilgrimages to the baptismal font ended than the bright series of first communions and confirmations begins, and when the smallest brother puts away his first-communion suit, out comes the family's first nuptial veil, bringing together before the altar the parents, all the children, and the delight of new in-laws."

Democracy. "So far-reaching and decisive has the activity of the state become in modern times that a democratic form of government is considered by many today to be a natural postulate of reason itself."

Automobiles. To the Ninth International Congress of Automobile Elegance: "The automobile is one of the happiest fusions between mechanics and art ... A car's elegance must be a symbol of nobility of soul. The coachwork must be subject to the severe laws of aerodynamics. Coach-builders have made use of this subjection to conceive models whose lines adapt themselves to the movement of the eye which follows the vehicle hurtling at top speed along the road."

Women. To the Italian Women's Center: "Women are creation's masterpiece . . . The concept of the woman of the shipyards, of the mines, of heavy labor as it is exalted and practiced by some countries in the name of progress is anything but a modern concept. It is a sad return toward epochs that Christian civilization buried long ago."

Peace. "We must persuade those who are easily deceived by the mirage of a peace consisting in an abundance of temporal goods that security and lasting peace are above all a question of spiritual unity and of moral dispositions."

Ireland. To the Irish Pioneer Total Abstinence Association of the Sacred Heart: "Ireland is a land of the smile and the tear. Also, alas, what a flood of tears, drowning out the joy and laughter of home and hearth, has poured through when the dyke of temperance has been shattered."

Silence. To the Italian League Against Excessive Noise: "Silence is beneficial not only to sanity, nervous equilibrium and intellectual labor, but also helps man to live a life that reaches to the depths and the heights."

Mercy Killing. "Morals evidently condemn mercy killing, that is, the intention to cause death. But if a dying person consents, it is permissible to use with moderation narcotics which will allay his suffering but will also cause quicker death ... In this case, death is not the direct intention."

Rocketry. To a rocket congress: "When God enjoined man to conquer the earth, He doubtlessly included the universe as well. Your action is completely legitimate and praiseworthy."