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A few days before the elections of 10-13 June for the new European Parliament, the first after the enlargement of 1st May, the hopes aroused by this fresh start for the 25-member Europe are becoming ever stronger. SIR has interviewed Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran , Librarian and Archivist of the Holy See, and former Secretary for Relations with States. On 1st May Europe celebrated its enlargement to ten new countries… “I wouldn’t speak of enlargement, but rather of return: the return of countries that had been excluded from their natural environment for so many years. It’s an exchange of gifts because by returning to Europe these new members will be able to contribute so many cultural and historical riches. These are factors of enrichment and not of disarray. It’s undoubtedly an important turning point in European history”. Some of these countries have experienced 50 years of Communist regime, a heavy legacy that has led some to speak of a Europe at different speeds. Do you share that view? “Certainly. Reaching decisions in a 25-member Europe will be a very complex business, and that’s why formulae will have to be found so that each member may feel a full partner. But for this to happen, the formulae must be realistic, because there are countries with different experiences. Politics is the art of the possible, so I trust something will be done”. John Paul II has repeatedly recalled the importance of having the Christian roots of Europe cited in the Constitutional Treaty… “The wish was to precede the institutional Treaty with a preamble containing a vision of the past history of Europe. In re-reading that history, it cannot be denied that Christianity was the one religion that has contributed to the formation of the European institutions: we may recollect that the first school was founded at the court of Charlemagne thanks to the work of a monk, Alcuin. That’s an incontrovertible fact: a monk founded Europe’s first school. The first universities were founded by the Church. I would also recall that the first exercise of direct democracy was the election of abbots in Benedictine monasteries. Paul VI, in a phrase also repeated by John Paul II, said that Europe was born from the cross, the book and the plough: in essence the Benedictine spirituality. We may also think of pilgrimages and the Latin language as cultural factors that have shaped the character of Europe. History needs to be read. If there is a preamble, may it be impartial”. You have a deep knowledge of the problems of Christians in the Holy Land. They fear that the diplomatic action of the Holy See on the question of the Christian roots of Europe may put the question of the Holy Land on the back burner. Do you agree? “It cannot be denied that there is a haemorrhage of Christians in this part of the world. This is also because there are situations that have lasted for many years and it cannot be expected that everyone should be, or become, heroes. There are critical situations in the Holy Land and in Lebanon that concern Christians. What we want to avoid is the Holy Places becoming museums: we want them to be living realities with Christian communities that actively operate in their territory. We want Lebanon to continue to be the laboratory of dialogue that it has been hitherto, where Christians are equal partners with the faithful of other religions. The Christians of the Middle East continue to have all the Holy See’s necessary attention. The Holy See is concerned that Christians should be witnesses of their faith in the midst of other believers”. Could the entry of Israel into the European Union, as someone has proposed, help solve the Middle East crisis? “Europe must necessarily have frontiers. One possible scenario is to think of the EU as it is now and of other associate countries, linked to it by various kinds of relation, such as partnership. But that will be a long-term process”.
