CHURCHES IN BRIEF
Portugal: the bishops’ pastoral note During last week’s Plenary Assembly in Fatima, the Portuguese Bishops’ Conference (CEP) released a document titled "Promoting the Renovation of the Pastoral Care of the Church in Portugal", which proposes "a new mentality in ecclesial action". "Our witness should be credible, it shouldn’t appear merely strategic. It should be humble, sensitive, sympathetic, welcoming, prophetic and evangelizing, capable of showing the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd; a Church that isn’t inward-looking, that is open to the world that God loves", states the pastoral Note released in a press conference. The bishops’ document incorporates and makes concrete the main themes of a proofound awareness and study process conducted at various levels, which includes a survey on "Religious Identities in Portugal – Representations, values and practices". CEP identifies the areas for common pastoral action: "the primacy of grace and the need for a new mentality whereby the Church lives in communion for mission, bearing witness to a revived faith and triggering initiatives for Christian initiation and formation". "This is the spirit of our work in addressing major, crucial challenges through various channels", said the Cardinal Patriarch of Lisbon José Policarpo. The patriarch said he looks forward to a long-lasting process that envisages "increased commitment by CEP and diocesan bodies in charge of pastoral work, to boost the dynamism of a common service for the promotion of religious movements, perspectives and initiatives". Austria: the 900th of the Orders of Malta and Saint John With an ecumenical service at St. Steven’s Dome in Vienna, on April 13 the Catholic Order of Malta and the Evangelical Order of Saint John ("Johanniterorden") celebrated together their 900th anniversary. The Mass was officiated by the bishop of Graz Monsignor Egon Kapellari and by the evangelical superintendant for Lower Austria Paul Weiland. "The Johanniterorder and the Order of Malta are an example of lived ecumenism, bound by a common story and a common task", Weiland said in his sermon. "The commitment for those in a state of need reminds us that faith in the invisible God implies responsibility towards the visible other", he continued. "Society needs Churches and Christians: the reality of life isn’t only made of what is material and visible". "Always looking towards Jesus Christ and those in need: it has been this way for 900 years, in the good and in the hard times, sparked off from the decision to set up a hospital in Jerusalem", said Monsignor Kapellari in his address, referring to the origins of the order of Malta in the 11th century. "The originary impulse has been stronger than Church divisions. Today’s joint ecumenical function", he concluded, "bears witness to this". Germany: 2013 Week for Life The Week for Life 2013 is nearing its conclusion. The initiative of the Evangelical and Catholic Churches in Germany has been ongoing for the past two decades. "Committed for life: creating cohesion" is the theme of this year’s edition, that was opened in Mannheim on Saturday April 13, with an ecumenical celebration presided over by the Catholic Archbishop of Freiburg Monsignor Robert Zollitsch, and by the evangelical bishop of Baden, Ulrich Fischer. "Providing impulses to reflect on how individuals can become active in an increasingly complex society, to improve the living conditions in their environment" is the objective of the Week, supported and funded by various ecclesial realities and institutions. In a Europe where the gap separating the rich and the poor is growing larger, "God wants our cooperation". "What is unimaginable can be achieved – said Msgr. Zollitsch -, when we pray God and when we extend our hands to take care of the good of our city and of the people near us". "We don’t realize it but we are expected to be available for our neighbors and fellow others, who rely on our solidarity and need our participation". Bishop Fischer said that "cohesion can be accomplished in a large city only when religious resources are put to use and when coexistence is understood as a spiritual commitment". In concrete terms, Fischer said, Churches can contribute to the good of the whole city through their ecumenical and interreligious cooperation with solidarity initiatives and with participation in the initiatives promoted in cities’ boroughs. The Week for Life was implemented with initiatives in local communities across Germany. Info: www.woche-fuer-das-leben.de.
