VATICAN CITY--In a call that could have an impact on farming techniques in predominantly Catholic parts of the developing world, Pope John Paul II said that using genetically modified organisms to increase production was contrary to God's will.

Speaking Nov. 12 to an estimated 50,000 farmers from Italy and elsewhere at a special outdoor mass dedicated to farmers, the Pope told them and their colleagues worldwide to "resist the temptation of high productivity and profit that work to the detriment of the respect of nature." The pontiff added that "when (farmers) forget this basic principle and become tyrants of the earth rather than its custodians ... sooner or later the earth rebels."

Furthermore, the Pope said, if modern farming techniques "don't reconcile themselves with the simple language of nature in a healthy balance, the life of man will run ever greater risks, of which already we are seeing worrying signs." He did not specify the signs.

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