CCEE, Romania, Germany

CCEE: bishops’ plenary on the "challenges of our times" "The challenges of our time: social and spiritual aspects" will be the central theme of the annual Plenary Assembly of the Council of European Episcopal Conferences. The topic will be introduced through three interventions which will take the theme in different ways: These interventions have been entrusted to: the Archbishop of Malines-Brussels, Mgr André-Joseph Léonard, President of the Belgian Bishops’ Conference; Prof. Marta Cartabia, lecturer in law and Judge of the Constitutional Court in Italy; and Prof. Kuno Schedler, lecturer in business economics at the University of St Gallen. Cardinal Péter Erdõ, Archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest (Hungary) and President of CCEE, explains the reasons behind the choice of theme and venue: "We are gathering in St Gallen to commemorate the 1400th anniversary of Saint Gall’s arrival in the city. We will be pilgrims, to listen to Saint Gall who had a very important role in the evangelisation of what was then a remote part of Switzerland. As in every pilgrimage, our meeting will revolve around prayer of praise to the Lord, through the various celebrations which will characterise our programme, and discernment, in particular about "the spiritual and social challenges of our time". According to card. Erdõ, "In fact, at this time of economic difficulty, people today, the European citizens of our countries, can easily allow themselves to succumb to the major epidemic of our time: desperation. The lack of hope is the greatest evil of our time". "The new evangelisation, the theme which has been accompanying us in recent years, is an opportunity and an appeal, to work so that Christ, always the same yesterday and today, can be understood and welcomed by everyone. A heart which has found its way in Christ will be able to perform miracles in the family, at school, at work and in different national and international institutions", the cardinal goes on. Other issues to be tackled during the four-day meeting include: the question of discrimination against Christians in Europe and the persecution of Christians throughout the world; the question of freedom of religion; the work of the European Union and the Council of Europe; the Year of Faith; and the 50th anniversary of the opening of the Second Vatican Council. Also attending the meeting in St. Gallen will be the Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, Cardinal Marc Ouellet, and representatives from the continental ecclesial bodies for Latin America (CELAM) and Africa (SECAM), as well as Kazakhstan.Romania: the autumn session of the Bishops’ Assembly The Romanian translation of the Holy Scriptures, religion handbooks, the situation of the diocesan archives and the role of archivists are some of the items on the agenda of the assembly of the Roman and Greek Catholic bishops of Romania, for the autumn session of the Romanian Bishops Conference, due to take place in Þumuleu Ciuc (Harghita) from 25th to 27th September. The meeting, as told today by a notice of the Romanian Bishops Conference, will be hosted by the Roman Catholic archdiocese of Alba-Iulia. The Catholic bishops will reflect on some of the events that took place this year. The World Meeting of Families in Milan, the National Catholic Youth Meeting in Iași, and the General Assembly of the International Forum of Catholic Action, also held in Iași, in August. In addition, the prelates will make some considerations about evangelisation, in the run-up to the Synod, which will also be attended by the Romanian bishops mgr. Virgil Bercea, Greek Catholic bishop of Oradea Mare, and mgr. Petru Gherghel, Roman Catholic bishop of Iași. Proposals put forward by the Romanian dioceses and eparchies for joint initiatives on the occasion of the Year of Faith will also be reviewed. The Conference of the Catholic Bishops of Romania brings together the Roman Catholic bishops and the Greek Catholic bishops of Romania and meets twice a year for its ordinary session.Germany: assembly of the Bishops’ Conference in Fulda The Church has reason to be optimistic: this was said on 24 September in Fulda by mgr. Robert Zollitsch, president of the German Bishops Conference (Dbk), while opening the plenary assembly of the German Bishops. "Something new is growing, Christianity is not without strength!", he stated. "A time of change is also a time of opportunities, confirmation and new directions", he went on, adding that "Christian faith is never a retreat into a fictitious world or an escape from reality". Mgr. Zollitsch pointed out that "society is more and more de-Christianised", "faith is confined to the private sphere and increasingly left out of the public debate". So, the Church must be able to relate with "groups and milieus that are outside" it. Then, the president of Dbk urged parishes and communities not to withdraw on to themselves and pointed out that "the liveliness of faith does not depend on the local size of a parish, but the fact there are people to share joy and hope, sadness and fear, with". Finally, mgr. Zollitsch expressed the hope pastoral care may take new forms ("city pastoral") and use the new media.