On Thursday, Vatican city released the news about the recent activity of the Pope.

Pope Benedict XVI mentioned in his speech and praised Macedonia’s cultural heritage. He mentioned that Macedonians are the sign of those visible human and Christian values, incarnated in people’s lives and which “constitute the priceless spiritual and cultural heritage of the nation.

The following is an excerpt from the Pope’s message:

“Having overcome the tragedy of World War II, and following the sad experience of a totalitarianism that denied the fundamental rights of the human person, the Macedonian people are now on the road to harmonious progress. … Stable social and economic development cannot but take account of people’s cultural, social and spiritual requirements, just as it must make use of the most noble popular traditions and resources”. He likewise noted that globalisation, “while on the one hand bringing a certain levelling of social and economic differences could, on the other, aggravate the imbalance between those who take advantage of the increasing possibilities to produce wealth and those who are left on the sidelines of progress”.