Poland: State and Church for the family A joint commission of the Polish government and episcopacy gathered a few days ago in Warsaw where a statement was issued in support of family policies. The document envisages family-subsidies increase along with initiatives aimed at preventing family conflicts and break-up. “The family is the main object of the State provisions”, the document states. Such provisions ought to be implemented “in cooperation with local authorities, social partners and non-governmental organizations” while “the Catholic Church, the other Churches and religious associations are important interlocutors within the framework of these activities”. The government is committed at launching a package of measures in the first three months of 2009 called “Generations solidarity: measures in favour of children and the family”. Considering that a third of Polish children live in large family households, the blueprint provides for subsidy increases for numerous families, with special emphasis on low-income families. The document provides for facilitations for mothers that need to preserve the work-family balance; a problem that is mostly felt in households with disabled family-members. Abandoned minors and special support to foster-care are equally addressed. The document’s promoters highlighted the need for greater child protection and for measures against child-abuse in all environments. The declaration envisages repercussions on current legislation and relative modifications that ought to be taken into due account.Germany: “no” to mercy killing Ethical questions related to transplants, the patients’ disposition and assistance to terminal patients: these were some of the issues addressed during a colloquium with representatives of the German Bishops Conference (Dbk), the German Council of Evangelical Churches (EKD), and of the German Federation of the Medical Registers, that took place a few days ago in Berlin. As relates to the will of the patients, in a joint press release the panellists underlined “the importance of living will, so that a person enjoying the patient’s trust be involved in the most serious cases. It is equally necessary to increase hospice services and envisage palliative treatment”. “Doctor-assisted suicide conflicts with medical ethics and can’t be morally justified”, they claimed, equally rejecting the legal limitations to doctors’ obligations along with the legal foundations endorsing mercy killing. The meeting was attended by Msgr. Robert Zollitsch, DBK President, Wolfgang Huber, EKD President, and by Jörg-Dietrich Hoppe, President of Germany’s Medical Register. The Netherlands: comforted by religious funerals Some 47 % of Dutch citizens find consolation in religious funeral service. The data was disclosed in a survey issued in November by the research Institute Kaski under request of the KRO and of Koninklijke Facultatieve. Three quarters of Dutch citizens said they attended a religious funeral; this figure includes the faithful as well as two thirds of the non-faithful. 68 % of Catholics have experienced the comfort of Church involvement during funeral rites; the figures reach 72% in the case of Protestants and represents 21% of the non-faithful. One Dutchman out of 5, constituting 22% of the overall population, views positively going to church for the funeral of the dear one. Catholics (31%), and Protestants (31%) declared that attending a religious funeral has brought them closer to the Church, as compared to the rest of the population. In fact, almost half of the population (48%) oppose going to church: this number represents 64% of the non-faithful, 28% of Catholics and 33% of Protestants. A positive evaluation was given to the role of the pastor during the funeral rite; more than half (53%) said that the pastor has a supporting role during the funeral. The great majority of Catholics (62%) and Protestants (69%) support the validity of this experience and a large number of the non-faithful (40%) appreciates the contribution of the pastor. However, for their own funerals, the population majority said they don’t want a pastor or another spiritual figure. 35% would like to have a good friend performing the service, 28% a priest or pastor, while only 7% wish that religious rites be officiated. Catholics (57%) and Protestants (75%) obviously opt for a pastor or minister.
