home
***
CD-ROM
|
disk
|
FTP
|
other
***
search
/
TIME: Almanac 1990
/
1990 Time Magazine Compact Almanac, The (1991)(Time).iso
/
time
/
052989
/
05298900.023
< prev
next >
Wrap
Text File
|
1990-09-22
|
1KB
|
21 lines
WORLD, Page 63World NotesPOLANA Nod to The Church
For nearly four decades the Roman Catholic Church had no legal
status in a country that is more than 90% Catholic. Last week,
however, Poland became the first East bloc nation to recognize the
church. The parliament approved a law that permits the church to
operate businesses, schools and hospitals, and to run radio and
television stations. The action came in the wake of a power-sharing
agreement reached between the government of General Wojciech
Jaruzelski and the Solidarity labor movement, which has strong ties
to the church. Catholic leaders have played a key role in
negotiating the agreement with Solidarity and the promise of
relatively open elections, set for next month.
The establishment of formal diplomatic relations between Warsaw
and the Vatican is expected to come next. That would be the first
such link between the Holy See and a Soviet bloc government. It
would also provide a capstone to a campaign for mutual recognition
dear to the heart of Pope John Paul II, the only Polish-born
Pontiff in church history.