VATICAN CITY, OCT 2, 1998 (VIS) - The Pope dedicated his entire discourse this morning to the defense of life, and to the building of "a genuine culture of life," when he spoke to the bishops of the Church in California, Nevada and Hawaii, U.S.A. Addressing them he said: "We are coming to the end of a century ... of almost unlimited progress, but which is now ending in widespread fear and moral confusion. .Above all, society must learn to embrace once more the great gift of life." He told them that as bishops they must "stand firmly on the side of life, encouraging those who defend it and building with them a genuine culture of life."

He said that as bishops they must "find the right language and imagery to present" the Church's teaching on life, married love and the dignity of women "in a comprehensible and compelling way." He said: "Despite the generous efforts by so many ... the idea that elective abortion is a 'right' continues to be asserted." And, he said, there is "an unimaginable insensitivity to the reality of what actually happens during an abortion. A society with a diminished sense of the value of human life has already opened the door to a culture of death."

The Pope pointed out the need to make alternatives to abortion available: supporting women in crisis pregnancies; providing counseling services; opening hearts and homes to "'unwanted' and abandoned children, young people in difficulty, to the handicapped, and to those who have no one to care for them."  He then addressed "the morally objectionable nature of campaigns for the legalization of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. Euthanasia and suicide are grave violations of God's law." He cited the need "to clarify the substantial moral difference between discontinuing medical procedures that may be burdensome, dangerous or disproportionate to the expected outcome - and taking away the ordinary means of preserving life, such as feeding, hydration and normal medical care. The omission of nutrition and hydration intended to cause a patient's death must be rejected and the presumption should be in favor of providing medically assisted nutrition and hydration to all patients who need them."

In concluding remarks, Pope John Paul told the bishops that "an essential feature of support for the inalienable right to life, from conception to natural death, is the effort to provide legal protection for the unborn, the handicapped, the elderly, and those suffering from terminal illness. Catholics, and especially Catholic legislators, must continue to make their voices heard. . America must become, again, a hospitable society, in which every unborn child and every handicapped or terminally ill person is cherished and enjoys the protection of the law."