"He was a man of hope, he lived on hope and spread hope amidst all those he met". With these words the Pope defined card. Francois-Xavier-Van Thuan, five years after his death. As he received in audience, today, in Castelgandolfo, the officers and workers of the Papal Council for Justice and Peace, Benedict XVI began by recalling that 5 years later "the noble figure of this faithful servant of the Lord is still alive in the minds and in the hearts of all those who met him. I too he added retain quite a few personal memories of the meetings I had with him, during the years he served here, in the Roman Curia". "How could one forget said the Pontiff about the "bright testimony" of the cardinal the marked traits of his simple, straightforward friendliness? How could one but highlight the ability he had of speaking to anyone and being close to anyone? We remember him with so much admiration, while the big, hopeful visions which enlivened him and which he proposed in an easy, captivating manner come to mind; his fervent commitment to the spreading of the social doctrine of the Church amidst the poor of the world, his longing for the evangelisation of his continent, Asia, his ability to coordinate the charitable activities of the Church and the work for the promotion of man that he was engaged in and that he supported in the remotest places of the world".
