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Pope's concern over unacceptable practices

VATICAN CITY April 17. Pope John Paul II issued a stern reminder on Thursday that only priests can celebrate Mass and divorced Catholics who remarry cannot take communion, expressing alarm over what he called unacceptable practices in his flock.

Pope John Paul also warned Catholics against receiving communion in non-Catholic churches, an admonition that is likely to stir up protests in the U.S. and other countries where inter-faith services are a fundamental part of efforts to bring Christians closer together.The denunciations of practices which clash with Vatican teaching were contained in an encyclical issued on Holy Thursday, a commemoration of Jesus' Last Supper with his apostles.

Encyclicals are a special kind of letter dealing with matters of extreme importance to the Church.

The 78-page document is aimed at combating abuses related to the Eucharist, commonly called communion, a sacrament central to the life of the Church.

``It is my hope that the present encyclical letter will effectively help to banish the dark clouds of unacceptable doctrine and practice,'' the Pope wrote.Pope John Paul added: ``In various parts of the Church abuses have occurred, leading to confusion with regard to sound faith and Catholic doctrine concerning this wonderful sacrament.''

In parts of Western Europe, as well as in the U.S., many divorced Catholics who have remarried have been clamouring for the Church to allow them to receive communion. But the Pope cited centuries-old teaching that all faithful must confess grave sins before taking communion.

AP

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