Germany, Austria, Portugal

Germany: no to “clericalization of the laity”Cardinal Joachim Meisner of Cologne and the Diocesan Council met a few days ago to discuss the document “The Courage to act”. Issued at the end of last year, the document contained a number of proposals put forward by the Council of the Laity, including the abolition of priestly celibacy and the introduction of women priests. Both were rejected by the cardinal, the Catholic news agency KNA reported on May 15th. During the meeting, Msgr. Meisner has reiterated his position, warning against the “clericalization of the laity and their meddling in matters concerning bishops.” At the same time, the archbishop stressed that he “acknowledged the many efforts of the laity of the Archdiocese in society, in politics and in the Church”. Msgr. Meisner also judged positively the document, which is the result of the dialogue initiated in 2010 by the German bishops on the future of the Church. He praised the fact that “the Diocesan Council takes on social responsibilities and speaks in favour of the protection of the Sunday Holiday, the protection of life and the maintenance of the Catholic elementary schools.”Austria: nationalism, Europe’s original sin Nationalism is the “original sin of Europe”, said Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, president of the Austrian Bishops’ Conference and Archbishop of the capital. Speaking in Vienna at a forum organized by the Akademie für Evangelisation der Gemeinschaft Emmanuel, the cardinal warned against the revival of nationalism in Europe, noting that “there are worrying signs emerging in the climate of the ongoing economic crisis”, and that these “must be countered.” “The crisis – he added – can only be defeated by solidarity and empathy” among the peoples of Europe. “Lacking these, nationalism led Europe into the two disasters of the world wars.” The Cardinal criticized the fact that the current economic system is based on “permanent growth, and ultimately on the illusion of strength on the part of Europeans.” Instead, we must recognize its fragility in order to “move towards sustainability. Only if people accept their weaknesses can empathy and solidarity arise”, he said.Portugal: Papacy consecrated to the Virgin MaryOn May 13th at Fatima, the Cardinal-Patriarch of Lisbon consecrated the papacy of Pope Francis to the Virgin Mary, addressing his prayers to the Holy Mother to support him in the “ordeals” that he will have to face during the course of his ministry. “Give him the gift of discernment to identify the manners of the Church’s renewal; give him the courage not to hesitate to follow the indications of the Holy Spirit; protect him in the difficult hours of suffering, to overcome, through charity, the challenges that these transformations will bring upon him.” He invoked Polycarp in the closing prayer of the international pilgrimage which took place on May 13th. The President of the Portuguese Episcopal Conference (CEP) pointed out that three Popes (Paul VI, John Paul II and Benedict XVI) visited the Shrine in recent memory: “Only you, O Lady, with your maternal love for the Church, can lodge in the heart of Pope Francis the desire to make pilgrimage to the holy place of your visions.” We must cultivate hope in a “silent complicity” between the Virgin Mary and the Holy Father, so that he may feel attracted by the prayers of millions of other pilgrims: “Here in this altar of the world, Francis will bless creation, to make humanity feel that God loves all men and women of our time, that the Church loves them, and that you, Mother of the Redeemer, bring all the people gently through the paths of salvation”, added the Cardinal-Patriarch. The desire for renewal of the Church leads to rediscover the relevance of the message of Fatima: the need for conversion to an offended and forgotten God: “Contemporary humanity needs to feel loved by God and by the Church – said Polycarp. Only by feeling loved it will win against the temptation of violence, of materialism, against the loss of orientation, and will be able to create a new world in which that same love will reign”.