Evangelicals Have Praise for Pontiff

Evangelicals, generally aloof from ecumenical associations with Roman Catholicism, have praised Pope John Paul II for his opposition to abortion, euthanasia and homosexuality.

The National Assn. of Evangelicals, in an unusual statement issued from its Wheaton, Ill., headquarters, also applauded his efforts to promote political and religious freedom and commended “the new spirit of freedom in the Roman Catholic Church.”

But the organization, including 71 mostly smaller, conservative denominations, said the Pope, “like his predecessors, stands for all the teachings that have historically divided a biblically rooted evangelical Christianity from Roman Catholicism.”

Among differences cited were the 16th-Century Protestant Reformation mottoes, “Scripture alone, faith alone, grace alone.”

Nevertheless, the association said it shared a “common Judeo-Christian value system” with Roman Catholicism and called for “continued cooperation in forging a moral leadership that will advance the cause of righteousness in our nation and around the world.”