Ongoing journey

“Europe, have courage”. A “clear outlook full of hope” characterized the CCEE Plenary Assembly that brought to Paris 36 Presidents of European Bishops’ Conferences from October 1 to 4 – (previous news reports in SIR Europe 66/2009). The CCEE final statement takes stock of the decisions taken during the meeting. The Presidents approved the request of Mgr Joseph Soueif, Maronite Archbishop of Cyprus, to become a member of the Council of European Bishops’ Conferences. The Plenary Assembly established a new Episcopal CCEE Commission “Caritas in Veritate” which will have the task of promoting the sharing of Bishops’ Conference activities in the areas of pastoral work on social issues, migration, justice, peace, and the safeguarding of creation. The Presidents approved the following events: the Plenary Assembly of the European Episcopal Commission for Media (CEEM) on The Internet culture and Church Communication (Rome, 12-15 November 2009); the VIII European Congress for bishops with responsibility for pastoral care of migrants which will take place in Malaga, Spain, from 27 April – 1 May 2010 on the theme “The Europe of people on the move. Overcoming fears. Outlining perspectives”; A European Pilgrimage which will go from Esztergom (Hungary) to Mariazell (Austria), passing through Slovakia, aimed at Bishops’ Conference delegates with responsibility for environmental issues. The Pilgrimage will have the slogan “If you want peace, protect creation” and will take place from 1-5 September 2010. The 2010 Plenary Assembly will take place in Zagreb, Croatia, September 30 – October 3 2010. Not the way towards triumph. During the Assembly Msgr. Robert Zollitsch, President of the German Bishops’Conference, recalled the reunification of Germany in the homily delivered October 3rd. “In past century Europe – he said – few people resorted to all the power in the world that took the form of murderous ideologies. Those of us that have been granted to live today have all reasons to be grateful that such folly has come to an end. However, these people continue exerting their influence still today. Our contemporary world is incessantly lured in an orbit of erroneous notions, often imbued with violence”. “For this very reason we are asked to reaffirm, even in the public arena, our faith in Him who is almighty and in what we ‘see’ and ‘feel’ in the faith”, the bishop said. “By doing so we will appear to others as ‘incapable’, confounding the ‘wise’ and the ‘intelligent’. The way of the Church is not the way of triumph. It is not the path undertaken by those who confide in a victorious outcome and use wounding language. The way of the Church, in the modern world, must remain the way of Jesus, granting counsel and support, inspiring wisdom to adults and to children”. “If the State and the social forces should interfere in our realm of faith – limiting our freedom and deliberately insulting our beliefs, the Church will hold out”. However, added the prelate, “our mission in Europe must not be marked by pessimism or doom but by realism, peacefulness and faith bestowed unto the faithful”. Concern over the cathedral in Bucharest. European bishops sent a letter to the Catholic community of the archdiocese of Bucharest conveying their concern over the future of the Cathedral of Saint Joseph in Bucharest, the major Catholic place of worship that belongs to the Roman-Catholic archdiocese, endangered by the construction of an enormous building only 8 meters away from the Cathedral’s wall. In the letters the bishops also ask “Romania’s public authorities” to handle “this delicate case with the utmost attention”, protecting “the Cathedral of Saint Joseph” as a “value pertaining to European heritage that must be preserved for the next generations”. “Concern for the protection of this place of worship – wrote the Presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe – is a reality that involves the primary premises of the Catholic world”, whilst “hoping” that Romanian authorities “unequivocally” implement “the recommendations of domestic and international administrations, in order to save and value the heart of the Archdiocese of Bucharest”.Solidarity to Honduras. The Presidents of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe conveyed their solidarity to the Hondurian people in this “difficult moment” of political crisis. In a letter addressed to Cardinal Oscar Andrés Rodriguez Maradiaga, archbishop of Tegucigalpa and President of the Hondurian Bishops’ Conference, European bishops and cardinals write, “We are closely following the delicate situation of Honduras. We acknowledge that the Bishops’ Conference shares the anguish of the Hondurian people and that it is a voice of hope for peaceful coexistence. We offer our joint prayers and communion, and look forward to a speedy and fair recovery from the Country’s political crisis in compliance with your country’s legislation and of human rights”.