Manila (Fides Service) - The Christian Family: Good News for the third millennium" is the theme of the 4th World Day for Families which is being celebrated 25-26 January in Manila. Present for the occasion numerous Cardinals and other major church members, including Cardinal Crescenzio Sepe, Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples. Representing Pope John Paul II, Cardinal Lopez Trujillo, president of the Pontifical Council for the Family. In preparation for the event some five thousand people, mostly married couples, already in Manila have been attending an International Theological Pastoral Congress while their offspring attended a special Child1ren's Congress. Some 1,133 children aged 1-18 group according to age are being given special attention by local volunteers. The first World Day for Families was held in Rome in 1994; the second in Rio de Janeiro in 1997 and the third during the Holy Year 2000, in Rome. The theme of this year's Family Day was taken from Pope John Paul II's apostolic letter, Novo millennio adveniente in which the Holy Father underlines the importance of pastoral care for the family, particular when this fundamental institution is experiencing radical and widespread crisis. The Pope affirms: "In the Christian view of marriage, the relationship between a man and a woman - a mutual and total bond, unique and indissoluble - is part of God's original plan…On this point the Church cannot yield to cultural pressures, no matter how widespread and even militant they may be". At www.fides.org you can see the programme of the meeting, themes for reflection, as well as information on the 3rd World Day for Families held in Rome in 2000. SL (Fides Service 24/1/2003)