The right to speak

European Bishops gathered in Zagreb, Croatia, June 8-10 to talk about the “current world scenario, marked by a serious social and economic crisis”, in order to find “common strategies”, starting from the “non-negotiable values” that the Church “relentlessly refers to”. With these words Cardinal Josip Bozanic, archbishop of Zagreb and vice-President of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE) defined the objectives of the European bishops in charge for social issues. The meeting was attended by 34 representatives of 21 Bishops’ Conferences. The theme of this year’s meeting – after the encounters in Frascati (1998), and Warsaw (2000) – “The economical-financial crisis: hope(less)? Experience, initiatives, problems and answers from the Church in Europe”. Church and politics. Cardinal Péter Erdo, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest and CCEE President, clarified the terms of Churches’ participation in the social life of Europe. “Extreme separatist ideology” and “identificational ideology” are “erroneous ways” of conceiving the mission of the Church in the framework of justice and peace – the archbishop declared -. By “extreme separatist” ideology is intended the current of thought that wishes to separate “the Church and religious faith from social-economic policies and from the political realm” while confining “religious belief to the private sphere”. “To this ideology we ascribe the Marxist or Libertine thought”. “Identificational ideology” on the other hand, refers to the view of “Church mission and the fulfilment of the Kingdom of God on earth that draws inspiration also from Marxist analysis methodology and intervention, available to those Parties that intend to serve themselves of the Church”. The truth is that the teaching and the social action of the Church are not confined to “these dialectics”. “The Church, guided by love and sensitive to the true good of the human person, views politics and all those elements pertaining to social life as an integrating part of her service to God and in name of God to man”, the Hungarian archbishop told European Bishops. Indeed, “man cannot be divided: the various human capacities are part of the individual’s single organic reality”. And he added: “In this sense, it is evident that issues regarding Justice and Peace intrinsically belong to Church mission. Any attempt at separating pastoral mission or evangelisation from social issues would be a serious mistake and would give the impression that social justice is unrelated to faith and that God is not the Lord of History”. A new responsibility. The meeting in Zagreb was attended also by Msgr. Giampaolo Crepaldi, Segretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, according to whom the economic and financial crisis “is an opportunity not to focus on the downturn but to responsibly engage in development” by “planning, setting new rules for ourselves and find new commitments”. The crisis, said Mrs. Crepaldi, “questions our deepest selves and while it makes us feel more vulnerable it triggers our sense of responsibility”. It shows that “the economy is not self-sufficient unless it is sustained by a system of values of reference that transcend it, namely that are not confined to the economic realm. When this system of values is missing, the economy alone is unable to promote its own recovery”. “But although the crisis does pave the way to more rational economic behaviours, I don’t endorse a crisis that has placed workers and families on the verge of collapse and that prevents from granting effective support to Poor Countries”, Msgr. Crepaldi pointed out. The needs of the poor. Msgr. Crepaldi made a proposal: “the crisis – he said – is the occasion to reconsider the economy taking into account the needs of the poor and finally acknowledging them as a resource and not as a burden”. Msgr. Crepaldi expressed his concern that “financial subsidies to development, that were already precarious, might cease” and that “finance for development, however innovative, may comes to an end”. “We must envisage a solution to the crisis that not only revives the financial systems of developed and emerging Countries but that is capable of thwarting capital volatility and the scandal of tax havens and off-shore banks, that are very widespread”. Thus Msgr. Crepaldi criticised Countries like Italy that “brand tax havens while availing themselves of these”. “I am well aware that their suppression should occur simultaneously otherwise some would benefit of the others’ suppression. It certainly isn’t easy. But there is an opportunity. And if we are not grasping it it’s just our own fault”.