Relaunching the "Ecumenical Charter"” “

It is “urgently necessary” for the European Christian Churches to take the Ecumenical Charter seriously, because “by fostering the growth of cooperation in many fields, the text seems an appropriate way of eliminating historical, psychological and cultural obstacles that impede a free and frank theological dialogue”. This was one of the recommendations made at the meeting of the general secretaries of the European Episcopal Conferences held in Istanbul from 13 to 17 June. The conclusions of the meeting were described to us by Msgr. Aldo Giordano , general secretary of the CCEE (Council of the Episcopal Conferences of Europe) that was responsible for organizing it. “The meeting – said Giordano – was first and foremost an ecumenical experience. The general secretaries were in fact received by the ecumenical Patriarch, Bartholomew I, by the Armenian patriarch Mesrop II Mutafyan and by the Syrian Orthodox patriarchal vicar Yusuf Cetin. Check-up on the state of European ecumenism. A great variety of situations was acknowledged; they can be traced back to the schism between Eastern and Western Europe. “In Eastern Europe – explains Giordano – the relation between the Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church presents psychological and historical barriers that prevent encounter. In the West, while it is easier to meet together, there are nonetheless theological obstacles that hamper full communion. In this context, the ecumenical Charter has been seen as a very useful means of fostering de facto collaboration between the Churches. By so doing it may liberate the field of many obstacles that impede dialogue today. The Ecumenical Charter was signed in Strasbourg in 2001 by the presidents of the CCEE and KEK (the Conference that gathers all the other Christian churches in Europe). The text of the Charter enunciates a series of guidelines and specific commitments shared by the Churches: among them, the determination to “contribute to shaping Europe”, and the European institutions, and imbuing them with Christian values, and the commitment to contribute to the reconciliation of peoples and cultures. Other issues addressed by the Charter are the safeguard of the creation and the promotion of the dialogue with Judaism, Islam and the other religions. In describing these common commitments, “the Ecumenical Charter – says Giordano – makes room for collaboration and makes dialogue possible”. “If the Ecumenical Charter were to be taken seriously, we would discover many fields in which we can collaborate and paths that we can take today, so as not to remain immovable on the problems [that divide us] and promote concrete initiatives instead”. Churches and Europe. The general secretaries, Giordano reports, also spoke of the future of Europe, and urged the need for “the Episcopal Conferences to work at the national level with the members of the Convention. They then emphasized the need to give a structured form to the dialogue between the Churches and the European institutions. What is of particular concern to the Churches is that Europe should take two questions into serious account: Christian values and religious freedom, guaranteeing a space recognized to the Churches, where there still isn’t one”. Churches and Islam. The theme was at the centre of the work of the CCEE. The presence of Islam in the various European countries is very diversified. Everywhere, however, dialogue with Islam has become inescapable. The analysis starts out from countries of Moslem tradition, such as Turkey. “If Turkey – points out Giordano – will enter Europe, that means that Europe should equip itself to respond to this reality”. “In many parts of Europe – adds Giordano – we are now faced by the second, if not the third generation [of Islamic immigrants]. The presence of Moslems in our midst is by now a reality and must as such be taken into consideration. In other words, we are faced by a European Islam that is trying to inculturate itself in Europe”. With this Islam the Churches wish to enter into dialogue. The bishops emphasize the importance of formation in this context: “After September 11 – notes the CCEE in the final communiqué – the urgent need is felt for a new maturity in the meeting between Christianity and Islam to repudiate any evocation of the conflicts between religions or civilizations”. What type of Church is taking shape in Europe? “This European meeting – points out the CCEE – has shown the growth of the consciousness of the universality (or catholicity) of the Church. Each particular Church is growing in the assumption of responsibility for all the Churches of Europe”. Maria Chiara Biagioni