Scotland: family and social welfareThe Bishops Conference of Scotland accused Premier Gordon Brown’s legislative program of underrating the family. The new legislation will be presented next December, at the opening of the next session in Parliament. In a Note reported by “The Tablet”, the bishops called on the Government “to rethink” the controversial Equality Bill whose enforcement is planned by the end of the year in England, Scotland and Wales. The new legislation envisages that if Catholic adoption agencies don’t consider gay couples as adoptive parents they will have to shut down. The Bishops described this regulation as “deeply wrong”. Politics, they affirmed, should encourage family stability and ensure support to married couples. “We underline the importance of the human family as the basic social element. Centuries of experience have shown that support to the family is crucial to social welfare”, the Bishops declared. It’s not the first time that the Bishops of Scotland criticize the government. Cardinal Keith O’Brian, (from the diocese of Saint Andrews and Edinburgh) had previously condemned the ‘monstrous’ new bill on embryology and artificial insemination. England: “don’t be hostile” to the worldOn September 21, the “Home Sunday Mission”, the Day devoted to prayer and reflection over the proclamation of the Gospel, will be celebrated in England and Wales. “Living in Christ, implementing the mission in your parish” is the title of the DVDs that were sent to all parishes on this occasion. The audiovisuals address all spheres of parish activity, from the youth to the service to the poor. “We hope that each member of the Catholic community develops a personal awareness of their own evangelizing potential”, states a Note of the British Bishops Conference. “As Christians – explained Msgr. Malcolm Mc Mahon, President of the Bishops Commission for Evangelization and Catechesis – we are called not be hostile to the world we are living in. Indeed, we are under the obligation to live and manifest the treasure of the Gospel we believe in. If we witness opposition, misunderstanding and alienation due to the our faith, it means that we are most probably following the right path”. Italy: the Day of the Creation in Naples On September 13, the Third Day for the Protection of the Creation will be celebrated in Naples on the initiative of Italy’s Bishops Conference and of the archdiocese of Naples. “We chose the city of Naples to convey the support of the Italian Church to that of Naples especially as relates to the refuse crisis”, claimed Father Tonino Palmese, director of the Dioceses’ Office for the Protection of the Creation. “From the Pastoral viewpoint, in the past months the Church of Naples has prayed for the resolution of the refuse crisis and promoted differentiated refuse collection in over fifty parishes, encouraging the youth of the diocese to take part in a solidarity concert for the environment and the promotion of differentiated collection”. The Cardinal of Naples, His Eminence Crescenzio Sepe, in his introductory Note recalled “Naples’ remarkable beauty” and the Church’s contribution to its enhancement.Belgium: Jean Vanier’s Eightieth birthday Jean Vanier, the founder of “L’Arche” community, who devoted the past 40 years to people with disabilities, will celebrate his eightieth birthday on September 10. In an interview with Catho.be, the informative website of Belgium’s Bishops Conference, Vanier explained the underlying motivation for the community’s establishment. “I wanted a place that would support people who were undergoing hardships and were confined to mental institutions with much suffering and difficulties. I sought to help these people recover their freedom, identify and fulfill their dreams. I always believed that the most important thing was establishing relationships. It means helping the other to be himself”. Today L’Arche International is an association representing 135 communities in 36 world countries. It has 5 thousand members, with and without mental disabilities, who share their lives in the community and in the residential compounds.Belarus: a monument for John Paul IIOn September 3, bishop Uladzislau Blin inaugurated a monument dedicated to John Paul II in the city of Shumilina (Belarus, diocese of Vitebsk), which was erected near the church dedicated to the “Mother of God of Fatima”. The solemn inauguration and lighting up of the monument was attended by priests from the diocese, representatives of the Polish embassy, local authorities and numerous faithful. After the ceremony a prayer was said for the Pope’s canonization. The Mass was followed by a concert at the end of which participants placed candles and flowers on the monument of John Paul II.
