COMPOSED BY Archbishop ANGELO COMASTRI Vicar General of His Holiness for Vatican City President of the Fabric of Saint Peter's

"We have lost our sense of sin! Today a slick campaign of propaganda Is spreading an inane apologia of evil, A senseless cult of Satan, A mindless desire for transgression, A dishonest and frivolous freedom, Exalting impulsiveness, immorality and selfishness As if they were new heights of sophistication.a

Lord Jesus, Open our eyes: Let us see the filth around us And recognize it for what it is, So that a single tear of sorrow Can restore us to purity of heart And the breadth of true freedom. Open our eyes, Lord, Jesus!

"Surely God is deeply pained By the attack on the family. Today we seem to be witnessing A kind of anti-Genesis, A counter-plan, a diabolical pride Aimed at eliminating the family.

There is a move to reinvent mankind, To modify the very grammar of life As planned and willed by God.

But, to take Gods place, without being God, Is insane arrogance, A risky and dangerous venture.

May Christs fall open our eyes To see once more the beautiful face, The true face, the holy face of the family. The face of the family which all of us need.

"Lord Jesus, Purity has everywhere fallen victim To a calculated conspiracy of silence: an impure silence! People have even come to believe A complete lie: That purity is somehow the enemy of love.

But the opposite is true, O Lord! Purity is necessary As a condition for love: A love that is true, a love that is faithful.

In any event, Lord, If we cannot be the master of ourselves? How can we give ourselves to others?

"Everything seems over, The wicked seem to triumph, And evil appears more powerful than good.

But faith enables us to see afar, it makes us glimpse the break of a new day On the other side of this day. Faith promises us that the final word belongs to God: to God alone!