April

European and international Christian Churches and institutions 2 1st anniversary of the death of John Paul II . 4 Plenary Assembly of the French Bishops’ Conference (4-7) , at Lourdes. Conference (4-5) promoted by the Council of Europe to launch the three-year programme “Constructing a Europe for and with children”, in Munich. 6 Meeting of the Pope with youth in St. Peter’s Square , in preparation for World Youth Day. Meeting of Latin-American Bishops (6-7) , at Vienna, with representatives of the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, organized by COMECE, in preparation for the summit between the European Union and Latin America planned in the Austrian capital on 11-13 May. International meeting of WYD delegates, until 9 April at Sassone di Ciampino, Rome. 7 Solemn celebrations at Javier, in Spain, on the 5th Centenary of the birth (7 April 1505) of St. Francis Xavier, Patron of Missions, presided over by Cardinal Antonio María Rouco Varela, archbishop of Madrid and special envoy of the Pope. Departure from Bellinzona (Canton Ticino) of the march to Rome of a group of some eighty former Swiss Guards, as part of the celebrations marking the 500th anniversary of the foundation of pontifical military corps. 8 Prayer vigil in preparation for the Liturgy of the Palms , in Rome, in which 850 youth from various German dioceses, led by Cardinal Joachim Meisner, archbishop of Cologne and auxiliary bishop elect Heiner Koch will also take part. 9 21st World Youth Day. General elections in Italy and Hungary. 13 – 14 – 15 Easter triduum 16 Solemnity of Easter. 79th birthday of the Holy Father Benedict XVI. Blessing “Urbi et Orbi” from the Central Balcony of the Basilica. 18 European Conference on subsidiarity (18-19) with the title “Europe begins in your home” , held under the auspices of the Austrian Presidency of the European Council in collaboration with the Austrian Parliament, at St. Pölten (Lower Austria). 19 1st anniversary of the election of Benedict XVI as Pope. 21 Seminar on the consequences of the disaster at Chernobyl , on the 20th anniversary of the tragedy, held by the Pontifical Council of Justice and Peace, in collaboration with the Embassy of Ukraine to the Holy See, in Rome. 80th birthday of Queen Elizabeth II of Great Britain . 23 Award of the Cervantes Prize , the most important literary award in Spain, during a ceremony at the University of Alcalá de Henares (Madrid), in the presence of the Spanish Royal Family. 25 Plenary Assembly of the Croatian Bishops’ Conference (25-28), at Zagreb. 26 20th anniversary of the nuclear disaster at Chernobyl, in Ukraine. 24 Day commemorating the Armenians massacred under the Ottoman Empire (1915). 28 Meeting of CCEE European national delegates for university apostolate, at St.Gallen