CHURCHES IN BRIEF
Portugal, the bishops and the consequences of austerity The Portuguese Bishops’ Conference (CEP) conveyed its concern for the consequences of austerity on the population, calling for a "culture of dialogue" that is capable of overcoming the ongoing economic crisis. According to the final statement of the Plenary Assembly, held last week in Fatima, "the bishops urge those who have the noble task of governing the Country to fulfil the need for a just adoption of measures aimed at the recovery of the economy and finances, so as to spare all those living under the scourge of austerity". The Portuguese Catholic episcopate called for "the adoption of a culture of dialogue, for the quest of the common good, capable of overcoming individualisms and group personalisms, protagonisms, as well as social and political polemics, which, long from providing a solution, foment the standstill and a feeling of endless crisis". The CEP document equally "praises" those who, despite the ongoing difficulties, "are devoted to job creation initiatives, to the promotion of economic growth, and to the solidarity of the families" that welcome all those in dire straits, owing to unemployment or to the inability to payback their loans. The bishops’ praised the commitment of all "those who endeavour in charity works and in social action" inside the Church and across civil society, often through "volunteer work, offering bread and love, essential for a dignified life". Finally, the archbishop of Braga, Msgr. Jorge Ortiga, in his capacities as president of the Bishops’ Commission for the Social Pastoral care and Human Mobility, conveyed his "solidarity to all those forced to leave the country, having to undertake the difficult path of migration". France: the Pope to the bishops on Christian history For societies that do not always share the teachings of the Church and which "sometimes try to ridicule it, marginalise it or confine it to the private sphere" the Pope recommended a "Christian testimony rooted in Christ and lived coherently and authentically in everyday life". On November 17 Benedict XVI told this to second group of French bishops during their Ad Limina visit, guided by Cardinal André Vingt-Trois, president of the French Bishops’ Conference. In the audience, the Pope recalled the visit to Paris in 2008, notably the meeting with the realm of culture at the College des Bernardins, underlining the importance of religious and monastic life. "Your story said Benedict XVI to the French bishops is marked by a long Christian history that cannot be ignored or overlooked". "In the important debates held across society he added the voice of the Church must make itself heard tirelessly and with determination, even as She continues to be respectful of the country’s tradition of distinguishing the spheres of competence of the Church and those of the State". Benedict XVI pointed out the highlights and the major questions that regard the faithful and even those who "are aware of the great challenges of our time, a time when the Christian message is an irreplaceable point of reference". Believers are thus called to live a "unity of life", the Holy Father continued. As regards "the moral teaching of the Church", they must have the courage to proclaim their Christian beliefs "without arrogance but with respect, in the all areas of life".Slovakia: the first conference on Cyril and Methodius The first in the series of four international conferences on Ss. Cyril and Methodius was held in Nitra, Slovakia, on 13-15 November. Experts in the area of theology, ethics, philosophy, sociology, history, archeology and culturology attended the event entitled "Tradition and presence of the missionary works of Ss. Cyril and Methodius", which took place in the frame of the Jubilee Year to commemorate the 1150th anniversary of the arrival of the Thessalonian brothers to the region of Great Moravia. "Such a rich international conference testifies to the fact that cyrilo-methodian values are still actual", said Mons. Viliam Judák, bishop of Nitra, adding that "many virtues announced by the two missionaries to our predecessors are needed in human relations also today". The aim of the organizers was to evaluate current outcomes of the interdisciplinary research and to point to Nitra as a "crossroads of Europe and spiritual dialogue". The other three conferences on the life and mission of Ss. Cyril and Methodius will be held in 2013 at the Pontifical Gregorian University, the Pontifical College of Ss. Cyril and Methodius in Rome and the Roman Catholic Faculty of Theology of the Comenius University in Bratislava.
