A necessary outlook

The meeting of the spokespersons of European Christian Churches and communities that took place in Brussels November 12-15 on the initiative of CEC (Conference of European Churches) was dedicated to the dialogue of Churches and religions with European institutions, as established in article 17 of the Lisbon Treaty. The meeting was attended by some thirty communication representatives of European Orthodox, Protestant and Anglican Churches that are members of “PONEC”, the “press officers'” network established last year in Geneva under the aegis of CEC. The meeting opened with a panel discussion by Jorge César das Neves, representing the European Commission for dialogue with religions, churches and communities, and Fearghas O Béara from the European Parliament. We addressed the subject with Luca Negro, who left his assignment after 13 years of work in Geneva as CEC spokesperson. Why did you choose the theme of the relationship of the Churches with European churches for the PONEC meeting? “We chose the theme of Europe since Europe represents a major challenge for Churches in this continent. The problem consists in understanding how to help the Churches be more visible not only in the single countries but also at European level and within European institutions. This effort is made to the light of what has been envisaged in the Lisbon Treaty at article 17. Namely, that an open, regular and transparent dialogue is needed between the Churches and the European institutions. This relationship is yet to be created although today it is grounded on a basis of relations created in time and promoted by Church organizations in Brussels. I refer especially to the work undertaken by the CEC Commission “Church and Society” together with COMECE, to the commitment of European bodies such as Caritas Europea and CCME, the Commission for migrants in Europe, and Eurodiaconia, the organization that coordinates Church social institutions, etc”. Why is Europe so important to the Churches? “Europe is important to the Churches especially since the very history of the ecumenical movement encompasses the wish of tearing down the barriers that divided this continent. It must be said that Christianity drove apart in Europe while also past century world conflicts broke out in Europe. In this framework, the ecumenical movement – with the establishment of the World Council of Churches and of the Conference of European Churches – was born as an attempt to reconcile peoples and Churches of this continent. The Ecumenical Council of Churches was born in a period that witnessed the advancing scourge of the Second World war and started working in Geneva as an attempt to show Europe that reconciliation was possible and that the Churches wished to operate in this direction in a continent that had been lacerated by the war and by its tragic events. CEC was created 50 years ago in a context of Cold War and was developed as an attempt to create bridges of reconciliation and peace between the Churches and their peoples. It is therefore extremely natural that the Churches and the ecumenical organization take an interest in Europe”. Does this interest collide with the fact that Europe strives to enter in peoples’ living fabric? “Perhaps the effort is trying to understand that today discussing and speaking of religion, of Churches, and of the Churches’ and religions’ presence in society, from the national viewpoint only is meaningless. From this angle the episode of the crucifix in schools is significant since it points out that Europe affects the life of each and every State and therefore it is important to step up dialogue and the visibility and communication regarding the Churches’ role in Europe”. In addition to the episode of the crucifix Europe takes important decisions for citizens’ lives. What are the issues that are most dear to the Churches? “I wish to recall the recent letter sent by CEC and CCEE to all European Churches regarding the dramatic issue of climate change, in order to raise awareness among the youth in view of the Copenhagen climate summit and urge the governments to take action. This is one of the major issues we have been addressing at ecumenical level”.What role is played by Church spokespersons in this framework? “It’s hard to answer this question since in the various Churches the press officers have different responsibilities according to their working ambit. Thus our network is marked by a strong diversity. There are press officers dealing with complex realities such as that of the German evangelical Church that represents millions of faithful and smaller realities. However PONEC is a network created a year ago to help spokespersons emerge from their strictly national realities and jointly respond to the major challenges of Europe, identifying the best ways to bring the Churches’ contribution to the construction of the European Union”.