A “new evangelization” for the countries of South-East Europe at a time when the peoples of the Balkans are working to reconcile the memories of the past and to look to the future: this was the commitment assumed by the presidents of the Episcopal Conferences of the region, at the end of a meeting held at Celje, in Slovenia, from 12 to 13 March. The meeting was organized by COMECE (Commission of the Episcopates of the European Union) and CCEE (Council of European Episcopal Conferences) and had as its theme “the contribution of the Catholic Church to the reconciliation and stabilization of South-East Europe”. The objective, explained John Coughlan, spokesman of COMECE, was to “discuss interreligious dialogue and the implications of European unification for this region”. The participants in fact discussed with representatives of the European Commission the implications of the enlargement of the EU to Eastern Europe. A similar meeting was organized back in March 2001 to review the situation of the Churches in the Balkans and in South-East Europe. At Celje, the bishops decided to dedicate Pentecost 2002 to the prayer for peace in the Region. Representatives of the Bishops’ Conferences of Albania, Austria, Bosnia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Yugoslavia, Romania, Hungary and Macedonia participated in the meeting, together with CCEE secretary, Msgr. Aldo Giordano, and COMECE secretary, Noel Treanor.
