Vatican City, Oct 18, 2010 / 19:34 pm
In meetings with the new ambassadors to the Vatican from Colombia and El Salvador, Pope Benedict XVI urged their governments to work for full human development and an end to violence.
The Pope reminded Colombia’s ambassador Cesar Velasquez that the more than 200-year history of the Catholic Church in Colombia has left "indelible traces" on the nation’s culture and social institutions.
The Church, the Pope said, does not demand “special privileges,” only the freedom necessary to carry out its mission of salvation. “She yearns only to serve the faithful and all those who open their hearts to her," Benedict XVI said of the Church.
He added that the Church is "ever ready" to work with civil leaders for the common good in areas such as education, defense of the rights of indigenous peoples, and the fight against, poverty, drug trafficking, and government corruption.