CCEE, Germany, Austria

CCEE: Secretaries’ meeting on the new evangelization The new evangelisation at the centre of the 40th meeting of the General Secretaries of the Bishops’ Conferences (Ccee) due to tale place in Edinburgh, Scotland, from 29th June to 2nd July. At the meeting, which this year will be hosted by the Dynamic Earth Centre, the General Secretaries will reflect on the public testimony to faith in the world of politics, culture, the law and public opinion. Other themes on the General Secretaries’ agenda include discussion on: the Church’s financial systems; ecumenism in Europe, and the translation of the liturgical texts of the Catholic Church. The fortieth meeting of the General Secretaries will be opened by Cardinal Keith Patrick O’Brien, Archbishop of St. Andrews and Edinburgh, President of the Scottish Bishop’ Conference. Last year, in Vilnius, the General Secretaries reflected on some specific elements of the new evangelisation, such as: the relationship between culture and the quality of faith; the spiritual life and ecclesial adherence; and, finally, structures and charismas in the Church. This year, as told by a release from Ccee, just a few months before the opening of the Synod of Bishops on the new evangelisation, "the issue of public testimony of faith in European society will be tackled with reference to politics, culture, laws and public opinion". The reflections will be divided into three levels: the national level, that of Scotland, will be entrusted to Professor John Haldane, Director of the Centre for Ethics, Philosophy and Public Affairs of the University of St Andrews (Scotland); the European level, by Mgr Piotr Marzurkiewicz, General Secretary of ComECE (Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community) and by Mgr Aldo Giordano, the Holy See’s Permanent Observer at the Council of Europe in Strasbourg; and finally with a testimony from across the ocean, that of Mgr Ronnie Jenkins, General Secretary of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, who will talk about the American situation. Subsequently, the General Secretaries will focus their attention on the financing of the Church in Europe, ecumenism and the translation of some of the Catholic Church’s liturgical texts. The results of a survey carried out among the Bishops’ Conferences on the various financial systems of the Church in Europe will be presented by Dr Erwin Tanner, General Secretary of the Swiss Bishops’ Conference. The ecumenical situation in Scotland and Europe will be described by Fr Stephen Smyth, General Secretary of ACTS (Action of Churches Together in Scotland) and Bob Fyffe, a canon of the Episcopal Church of Scotland and General Secretary of CTBI (Churches Together in Britain and Ireland). Finally, the issue of the translation of the Missal and the Lectionary will be tackled by Mgr Bruce Harbert, former Executive Director of the International Commission on English in the Liturgy (ICEL).Germany: the abuse hotline 1945-1975 is no longer operativeThe hotline set up by the German bishops’ Conference (DBK) to report on cases of abuse perpetrated in the years 1945-1975 against children in Catholic orphanages will cease its activity as of June 30. The news was released by the DBK website (www.dbk.de). "After many years of successful work, this Church service is no longer necessary as in the meantime other initiatives have been implemented. The hotline has acted as an important step to raise awareness on the issue", said Msgr. Robert Zollitsch, Dbk president. "The hotline service has made it possible to gather information on the destiny of those who were children at the time. Notably – the prelate added – the hotline has given abuse victims the possibility to have a voice, giving them all the attention they had been often denied in the past". From January 2010, 909 people dialled the toll-free number. 73% of them referred of cases of mistreatment. 243 people denounced cases of abuse by adults. The coordinator of the hotline, Margarete Roenspies-Deres, said, "Many people considered the hotline as a gesture of reconciliation on the part of the Church, that soothed many deep wounds". Austria: an exhibition on card. Mindszenty in ViennaThe exhibition "Fidelissimus Pastor. Cardinal Mindszenty’s white martyrdom", under the patronage of card. Christoph Schönborn, archbishop of Vienna, card. Péter Erdõ, archbishop of Esztergom-Budapest, and mgr. Gyula Márfi, archbishop of Veszprém, will be opening in Vienna tonight. "The presentation of Mindszenty’s entire life is divided into theme units that match the highlights of his existence. The first section presents his homeland", explains Gergely Kovács, main curator of the exhibition. The second section deals with his ministry as bishop of Veszprém and then as the prince-primate of Esztergom, the years he spent in the Nazi and communist jails; for the first time, visitors will be able to see the items that guard his memory in Veszprém. This is followed by the time of the 1956 revolution days, the cardinal’s release from jail, the presentation of the time of his semi-imprisonment at the US embassy in Budapest; finally, his pastoral work for Hungarian migrants all over the world. The exhibition is free and the venue is Palais Porcia in Vienna until 10th August; from 20th August to 10th October, it will move to Veszprém.