Greece: the new primate of the Orthodox ChurchThe metropolitan bishop Ieronimos of Thebes and Levadia is the new archbishop of Athens and the primate of the Orthodox Church of Greece. He was elected on 7th February by the Holy Synod, gathered since 9 am in the Cathedral of Athens, for the election of the successor of H.B. Christodoulos, who died on 28th January, aged 69. The metropolitan bishop Ieronimos was elected at the second poll with 43 votes for, out of the 74 voting members of the Holy Synod.In the Cathedral of Athens, still closed to the public, the metropolitan bishop gave the so-called “Little message” in which he announces he wants to take the appointment. At the first round, the metropolitan bishop Ieronimos got 33 votes, Eustachios of Sparta 26, Anthimoes of Salonika 7, and Ignatios of Dimitriada 7, and there’s been a blank vote. At the second round, he got 43 votes, thus passing the set threshold of 37+1 votes. The election of the metropolitan bishop Ieronimos of Thebes shows, first and foremost – says to SIR the archimandrite Ignazio Sotiriadis of the Orthodox Church of Greece to the European institutions -, a “direction in favour of good relationships with the Ecumenical Patriarchate, and then he said himself that we must respect the legacy of his predecessor. The metropolitan bishop also studied in Germany, in Ratisbon, on a scholarship of the German Bishops Conference. So he is quite open-minded and has been appointed at many levels. A very active man, he comes from a very lively diocese. He is certainly a man who will continue the work started by his predecessor”.Poland: hand in hand with the German Church”We will try to share common experiences, and seek new possibilities to reinforce further the collaboration between the two Churches and the two Bishops’ Conferences”, declared the secretary of the Polish Bishops’ Conference, Monsignor Stanislaw Budzik, after the recent meeting in Warsaw with his German counterpart, Father Hans Langendoerfer SJ. “The most important objective is establishing how ongoing institutional collaboration between the two Bishops’ Conferences should take place”, said the secretary of the German Bishops’ Conference, giving his assurance that “the bishops of Germany are much involved in promoting relations between the two countries”. Father Langendoerfer also declared that “both churches have assumed a common position in relation to some questions of the past that have polarized public opinion, such as the setting up of a centre against expulsions in 2005. This shared position was formalized during meetings held at Fulda and at Wroclaw. Our efforts – he continued – aim at ensuring that, irrespective of the political situation of the day, efforts be made at the level of faith to solve the problems that arise between our two peoples”. According to Fr. Langendoerfer, if we are to have a strong Catholic Church in Europe, countries like Poland, France, Germany, Spain and Italy must assume a leading role. “We wish the Church in Europe to rest on solid foundations, and our bishops are very conscious of this responsibility. We must therefore strengthen the links between our nations within the European Community” so as “not to incur the accusation that Europe is losing its Christian nature, while at the same time supporting the stability of our continent”. Germany: 50th anniversary of MisereorOn the occasion of the 50th anniversary of Misereor, the humanitarian organization of the German Bishops’ Conference, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, Vatican Secretary of State, has sent a message of good wishes on behalf of Benedict XVI to Archbishop Werner Thissen of Hamburg, as representative of the charity within the German Bishops’ Conference, and to the President of Misereor, Monsignor Josef Sayer. In his message the Pope points out that, especially in the period of Lent, the humanitarian organization “exhorts many people in Germany to strive, in conformity with the message of Jesus Christ, for a just and worthy reciprocity between mankind throughout the world”. The message recalls “the uncertain beginnings of Misereor, an adventure in the Holy Spirit”, as it was defined by Cardinal Frings”. Since then, the Pope underlines, “a solid bridge has been thrown over the gulf between the well-to-do and the needy, a movement of collaboration that unites in solidarity countless people in Germany, Africa, Asia, Oceania and Latin America”. The organization “has thus become in some sense a common success of the Church in the continents of the southern hemisphere and in Germany: the sick, the hungry, families that lack the basic requirements for existence, children and young people deprived of education and training, derive hope and prospects for the future from the aid projects of the local Churches promoted by Misereor“ . The role of Misereor, defined as a “journey of hope for the poor”, does not only involve fund-raising, however: “Solidarity in the time of Lent will also be a pastoral contribution to a complete preparation for the celebration of the paschal mysteries that bring us close through the Church to the compassion of God in the person of our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ”.
