SPAIN
Permanent bishops CommissionVarious issues were addressed by the Permanent Commission of Spain’s Bishops Conference, which in the past days celebrated in Madrid its 209th reunion. After having taken stock of the Pastoral plan and having reviewed the 2007 budget of the Common Inter-diocese fund, of the same Bishops Conference, and of its organisms and institutions which will be subject to approval during November’s Plenary Assembly, the bishops of the permanent Commission examined the present situation and the future perspectives of Cadena Cope, one of the most important radio networks in Spain, the official radio of the Bishops Conference. The objectives of Cadena Cope are, in addition to those pertaining to all social media, “the service to truth, freedom” and the achievement of “the common good”. In addition to this, bishops are asking Cadena Cope to be an “evangelizing presence within public opinion”. The Episcopal Commission for the Doctrine of Faith asked the Permanent Commission authorization to publish a Note of clarification on the book by José Antonio Pagola, “Jesus. Historical approximation” (Madrid 2007), which was given. Msgr. D. Ramón del Hoyo López, bishop of Jaen and President of the Bishops Commission for Mission, submitted a document on the topicality of the mission Ad Gentes in Spain. The proposal is drawn from the conclusions of the National Missionary Congress, celebrated in Burgos in 2003, and from recent statements on this issue pronounced by the Holy See. The document will be debated by the Plenary Assembly prior to its approval. Bishops also discussed the national Eucharistic Congress of 2010. The diocese which will be hosting the event has not been decided yet. An info-ethics for human protectionIt is necessary to create “an info-ethics in defence of human dignity” within the media, similar to bioethics in the scientific domain. The proposal was made the past few days by the bishop of de Asidonia-Jerez and president of the Episcopal Commision for the media of Spain’s bishops Conference, Msgr. Juan del Río, in line with Pope Benedict’s pronouncements. The occasion was the inauguration of the III meeting of Bishops and Deans of Spanish Catholic Universities’ Communication Faculties, held in Valencia. According to Msgr. del Río, the “target” to be reached is the “humanization of the media”, whereby the “common good is the highest value” to be implemented also in the media realm. The “counter-values” which social media should guard against are “manipulation, the lack of respect for individual privacy, the prevailing role of private interests and the control of economic groups, value deformation and superficiality”, added Msgr. del Rio. The 75the anniversary of the San Pablo-Ceu University “A key-institution in the history of Spain and in the history of the Church”: this is how the University Foundation San Pablo-Ceu was described by its president Alfredo Dagnino, on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of its creation. Ceu’s “main task is its dedication to the Church and to its service”- Mr. Dagnino claimed, “which draws inspiration from the motto ‘restoring things in Christ’. In order to accomplish this goal it is committed in providing training to “men who will be active members of society”. Of this, said Dagnino, was already aware in 1933 the founder of Ceu, Cardinal Ángel Herrera Oria, who understood if there were no men with an adequate intellectual training, “the Church wouldn’t have a true capacity to perform its mission”. The mission of Ceu, at the beginning and also today, is that of “training men by encouraging an approach founded on the Gospel”. The present challenge for Mr.Dagnino is “to evangelize educating and to educate envangelizing”. In the Mass celebrated for the 75th anniversary, the archbishop of Madrid, Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, underlined “the importance of the presence of lay Catholics in the public realm”. Futhermore, he congratulated himself with Ceu for its “spirit of fidelity with the Church Magisterium and with the Pope, faithfully understood, without intellectual lamentations”. The University Foundation San Pablo Ceu consists of 28 educational centres, including a number of universities. There are 1,600 professors, while there are over 27,000 students, 74% of whom are university students who attend over 180 courses. The Forum of the Youth in Madrid “Walking on the hillsides” is the theme of the Youth Pastoral Forum organized in Madrid November 7-9m by the Scolopians, with the support of the Department for the Youth of Spain’s Bishops Conference. In the Forum’s organization are involved congregations, movements and Youth Pastoral Care delegations from all over Spain. The topic chosen for the Forum indicates that the youth wish to “dream” the future and testify their faith to others. The archbishop of Madrid, Cardinal Antonio María Rouco Varela, and the bishop of Palencia, Msgr. José Ignacio Munilla, have already confirmed their participation to the inaugurating session of the Forum.
