” “A prayer for the Holy Land” “

Respect for the sacred, the Holy Land, elections for the renewal of the parish councils, the “alliance for Sunday as a day of rest”, and ecumenism: these were the main issues on which the Austrian bishops focused their attention at their plenary Assembly held in the Voralberg, in western Austria, from 19 to 21 March, under the presidency of Cardinal Cristoph Schönborn (cf. SIREurope no.11/2002). The Assembly’s conclusions can be summed up as follows: Respect for the sacred. A “decided and public repudiation” when the central figure of the Christian faith is derided”; that is the judgement expressed by the Assembly in its final document, with regard to a recently published book of defamatory caricatures on the life of Jesus: “We bishops agree with those who don’t want to accept their faith in Christ being ridiculed or the most sacred symbol of that faith being abused for cheap entertainment”. The bishops recall that “Austria and her culture have been influenced by Christianity in a significant way and only if the deepest convictions of her citizens be respected” will it be possible to live “in a pluralist society”; that does not represent “a narrow confessional request”, the bishops conclude, but the task “of a modern and humane society”. The Holy Land. The prayer of the Church in Austria is addressed “in a particular way”, in the days that precede Easter, to peace in the Holy Land – “especially on Good Friday when the Church will pray for the needs of suffering Christians in the Orient”. The condemnation of “every form of terrorism and repression afflicting innocent men and women and damaging the infrastructures of the country” remains firm. In particular the Austrian bishops express their regret about the damage caused to the school centre in Gaza, to the construction of which the donations of Catholics had contributed. “In the Gaza strip”, the bishops recall, “the centre represents one of the few places where young people of different religions are taught to live together”. The bishops also point out how difficult “also economically”, is the situation of the Christians who live in the Holy Land and who “are forced to abandon the territory”; so much so that the danger exists that “one day only the stones will remain to bear witness to the message of Jesus”. Europe. “The reunification of Europe” thanks to the enlargement of the Union to the new candidate countries is entering a decisive phase and Austria, “situated as she is at the heart of the continent, must consider this occasion an historic necessity” because “the opportunities that this reunification holds out are greater than the problems it poses”, say the bishops. They appeal to Europe’s “rulers and to all her citizens” to support with passion the enlargement of Europe, so that Europe “may be felt as a true motherland and not as an anonymous apparatus or a labyrinth”. That is why, the Austrian Episcopal Conference declares, “we wish to express our regret that the religious communities have not been sufficiently involved in the Convention for the future of Europe”. Alliance for Sunday as a day of rest. The issue of Sunday work was also discussed at this assembly, as also at the previous one in the autumn (cf. SIREurope no. 7/2001). A presentation was made of the campaign due to begin on 15 April: “Living in a hurry? The quality of life in the leisure time spent in common”. Its aim is to foster in public opinion the consciousness that “the leisure time spent on Sundays in local communities has a high social, cultural and psychological value”. The Austrian bishops also welcome the proposal to “sanction the principle of Sunday as a day of rest in the Constitution, which may be considered a signal of the general recognition of the value of the campaign”. P.Co.