CHURCHES IN BRIEF
COMECE: Assembly on migrants and integration”The autumn Plenary Assembly of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE), that will take place in Brussels from 13 to 15 November, will focus on “Migration and Integration”. The works will be opened by Cecilia Taylor Camara, a consultant for the migration policies of the Catholic Trust for England and Wales, charitable organization of the Conference of the English bishops who will share “The migrant experience” of those who are on the forefront of help to the migrants. The conference is an initiative of COMECE that includes a set of meetings begun in October in view of the European elections. The program will continue with an update session on EU policies on migration, asylum and integration of migrants, with the participation of representatives of European political institutions. Another session will be dedicated to human trafficking, an issue approached through the testimony of a police inspector and a woman from the United Kingdom victim of trafficking. . The bishops intend to “contribute to the development of a pastoral reflection” of the Church in Europe in this area” to respond to the urgent crisis and to develop pastoral strategies for the reception and integration of migrants in the future. “To social questions is also dedicated a large part of the November issue of” Europeinfos”, the monthly of the European ecclesial organization (www.europe.infos.eu). Among the many contributions and themes, José Ramos-Ascensão (Secretariat of COMECE) defines the terms of the issue and the ethical questions related to the increasingly widespread “surrogate motherhood”. Thorfinnur Ómarsson (Caritas Europe) will present the findings of a Caritas study on models of welfare state, highlighting foreseeable future weaknesses future with regard to the economic crisis. “Europeinfos” also discusses climate change, with a focus on “fuel poverty”, the difficulty of living in warm environments for economic reasons, with serious consequences on the health and lives of the people, the elderly in particular. Spain: initiatives for the conclusion of the Year of faith At the conclusion of the Year of Faith, the dioceses of Aragon will go on pilgrimage to the Cathedral Basilica of the Virgin of Pilar in Zaragoza, Saturday, Nov. 16. For the occasion, the five bishops (Manuel Ureña Pastor, Archbishop of Zaragoza, Alfonso Milián Sorribas, pastor of Barbastro-Monzón, Carlos Escribano Subías, Teruel and Albarracin, Julián Ruiz Martorell, of Huesca and Jaca, Eusebio Hernández Sola, of Tarazona) wrote a joint pastoral letter in which they invite the faithful to be guided by the love in the truth discovered through faith. “We are going on this pilgrimage – explain the bishops – with special devotion to Mary, figure and image of the Church, which brings together and reflects in a certain way the supreme truths of faith”. The pilgrimage is meant to be a concrete sign “of conversion and penance” on the occasion of the Year of Faith. “It is necessary to rediscover the content of professed, celebrated and lived faith”. “Our act of faith – said the bishops of Aragon – is all the more true as it is the figure and image of the act of faith of the Mother of God”. On the occasion of the Year of Faith the ecclesiastical province of Zaragoza organized another joint initiative of the dioceses of Aragon: a spiritual retreat for priests and lay Catholics on the four constitutions of the Second Vatican Council. Hungary: increasing contribution of the Catholic Church This year more taxpayers offered their discretionary 1% contribution to the Catholic Church in Hungary compared to 2012. Hungarians can decide each year which organisations should receive a percentage of their income tax with their tax returns. According to the website www.politics.hu, whereas in 2012 the Hungarian Catholic Church received 2.3 billion forints (7.8 million EUR) from 605,700 taxpayers, this year 2.5 billion HUF flowed into the Church’s coffers thanks to 655,898 returns. The Hungarian Reformed Church received 833 million HUF last year, which went up to 902 million this year. The third position has been taken by the Evangelical Church with 265 million forints. Alltogether, the Christian Churches in Hungary received 3.66 billion HUF from 1% contribution of paid taxes.
