CHURCHES IN BRIEF " "
Ccee-Secam: seminar “The joy of the family” The Council of the Bishops’ Conferences of Europe and the Symposium of the Bishops’ Conferences of Africa and Madascascar (SECAM) have decided to jointly promote a seminar of African and European bishops in the month of May 2015 that will focus on the family. “In the light of the recent apostolic exhortation of Pope Francis – made known the two ecclesial bodies -, in continuity with the reflections due to be addressed during the upcoming special Assembly of the Bishops’ Synod on the theme of the family” the seminar will address the theme “Family joy”. The purpose of the meeting, “is a survey of the family in Africa and in Europe understood as the protagonist of evangelization whilst in need of being evangelized”, stated CCEE and Secam. Czech Republic: the news of Hradec Králové Pope Francis has consecrated the world to the Immaculate Heart of Virgin Mary in October 2013. This gesture has inspired bishop Hradec Králové to entrust his diocese of Hradec Králové, in the Czech Republic, to the intercession of the Mother of God. The Eucharistic celebration will take place on January 1st 2014, on the occasion of the 350th anniversary of the foundation of the diocese. The program of the event also envisages the presentation of a new diocesan symbol conceived by cardinal Andrea di Montezemolo, one of the world’s most famous experts in heraldry. To the traditional coat of arms, depicting a dove symbolizing the Holy Spirit, will be added the letter “M” symbolizing the consecration to Mary. The faithful will have the opportunity of worshiping a copy of the statue of the Madonna of Fatima while in all the country’s parishes will be read the pastoral letter of the diocesan bishop. 2014, proclaimed the Year of Vocations in Hradec Králové, will be dedicated to evangelization and to youth pastoral care “to help youths discern their vocation in today’s world within their mission in the Catholic Church”. Slovakia: “United to help the families and the poor””In those places where men and women are condemned to living in poverty, that’s where human rights are infringed. Uniting our forces to ensure the respect of these rights is our solemn commitment”: that was the motto of the regional conference titled “Family and poverty”, organized a few days ago in Bratislava by the Slovakian Society for the Family (SSF) and by the Social Affairs Commission of the national Council of the Slovakian Republic. Experts from Slovakia, Poland, Hungary, Germany, Croatia, and various European bodies convened to discuss concrete actions that may contribute to a better cultural understanding of the family as a fundamental cell of society and the need for traditional public policies on the family that may provide useful information for the adoption of family policies in Central and Western Europe. According to MEP Anna Záborská, SSF president, family poverty is to be found also in more developed European nations. “This phenomenon really exists, even though generally it is not so visible such as – for example – the poverty of the Roma community in Slovakia, in fact many families, especially those with many children, live in conditions of extreme poverty. We must not give in to the globalization of indifference!”, Záborská told SIREurope. Zuzana Podmanická, from the Statistical Office of the Slovakian Republic pointed out that large families are the social group most at risk in Slovakia in the past four years. For Barbora Sadowska, who deals with poverty-related issues in Poland, it’s not enough to “redistribute material goods to help the poor”. Real help “consists in the efforts made to integrate them into society through active participation in the process”. Her words were echoed by Sándor Gurbai, president of Caritas Europa, who underlined that help to the poor “is not a question of service but rather of political will to create a partnership with the victims of poverty, in the common quest for solutions at all levels”. Bozena Kovácová, from the Association of cities and districts in Slovakia, indicated three areas of crucial interest to guide local policies in the fight to eradicate poverty, namely: life, education and work.
