ecumenism " "
The Council of the Christian Churches in France (CECF) issued a communiqué on Monday 24 May, appealing to voters to participate in the European elections and in the public debates that precede it. The communiqué is signed by its three co-chairman, one Catholic, one Protestant and one Orthodox. Pastor Jean-Arnold de Clermont (Protestant Federation), Msgr. Emmanuel (Assembly of Orthodox Bishops) and Archbishop Jean-Pierre Ricard (Catholic Conference of French Bishops) emphasise their “conviction” that enlarged Europe does not jeopardise the cohesion of the Union. “Instead, it must increasingly generate in its common values the energy it needs to build a pluralist society respectful of its diversity”. The representatives of the three Christian communities appeal to European leaders to “share their vision of the future with the peoples of Europe”. “Europe says the message must proclaim ever more clearly that reconciliation and peace are the foundations of its unity”. Only thus can the continent be the bearer of an important value for the whole world. The exponents of the Churches lastly indicate as priorities “social justice and the fight against poverty and all forms of exclusion”. “Europe concludes the appeal must make heard the voice of the poorest on the international stage and take part in the struggle for freedom and human rights”.
