A four-point programme for the Year of the Eucharist in the archdiocese of Vienna is contained in a pastoral letter of Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, president of the Episcopal Conference and archbishop of the Austrian capital. The letter, which was released on the first Sunday of Advent, contains an invitation to keep churches open, to hold firm to the link between charity and eucharist, to respond to the practice of eucharistic adoration and to intensify the preparation for communion. In his message, Schönborn announces that the Year of the Eucharist will end in Vienna with a solemn mass on 1st October 2005, which will mark at the same time the conclusion of the three-year period dedicated to the Bible: a sign that underlines the link between Bible and liturgy. The need to keep open the churches in the archdiocese is explained by the archbishop as follows: “At a time when so many people find themselves in a state of growing spiritual need, everything must be done to ensure they can come to Christ as easily as possible. Let us all help together” the letter continues “to ensure that our Church be truly an open Church”.
