August 6 was the 30th anniversary of the passing away of Pope Paul VI. The day he died coincidentally fell on the feast-day of “Transfiguration of the Lord”. L’Osservatore Romano described him as a great man brave enough to bear witness to the truth. He was also the hero behind the publication of the documents of the 2nd Vatican Council.<br/><br/>
After Pope Paul VI published on July 25, 1968 the Encyclical Letter of Humanae Vitae, the Church was under attack by many theologians. Of course, the Pope himself bore the main thrust. However, he did not change his stand on the truth. <br/><br/>
The Vatican Radio made the following comment : “In the west, once the 60’s of the 20th Century was mentioned, every one understands that it was a terrifying time of revolt and  overturning of traditions and values. It was also a time when the youths yelled for sex liberation and sexual freedom.” (25/7/2008) <br/><br/>
Cardinal Stafford of US recalled: “When Pope Paul VI announced the Encyclical Letter of Humanae Vitae, I was a young priest with the Baltimore parish. At that time, a group of theologians headed by Rev Charles E. Curran, professor in Moral Theology of the Catholic University of America, invited the young priests to sign an open letter to object the encyclical. I refused to sign because I was not given a chance to read the original document nor to ponder into its details. The result was contemptuous responses from my fellow-priests. After forty years, we can still see that Pope Paul VI was a farsighted and consciousness-raising shepherd.” <br/><br/>
A Franciscan priest who signed the open letter (he later left his priesthood) recently wrote a letter to the director of the “Centre for Human Life” of US stating his remorse and affirming the positive value of the Encyclical Letter of Humanae Vitae.<br/><br/>
Wishing all men will obey the rules set by God for humankind!