God watches over history

The 70th Anniversary of the beginning of World War II, and the 20th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall are “occasions to remember the sacrifice of many men who fought for freedom, and the suffering of Christians because of their faith. A reminder-meditation on the consequences of neglecting God and his existence. By ignoring God’s law, man is handed into the power of man”. These were the words pronounced by cardinal Angelo Sodano, dean of the College of Cardinals, at a meeting recently held in Cuneo (Italy) titled “Pious VII and Napoleon. A Lesson of History.” According to cardinal Sodano, the arrest of Pious VII by Napoleon (in 1809 – this year marks the 200th anniversary), “is a telling event for today’s youngsters”. The event occurred in a very painful period for the Church, at first because of the French revolution and after due to Napoleon’s dictatorship. “We can see in this historical event- the cardinal added- the consequences of the arrogance of one man’s hunger for power, but also note how on many painful human events the Divine Providence is able to draw good from evil and lead men to new paths of civilization”. Cardinal Sodano, who has been Vatican Secretary of State from 1991 and 2007, in an interview published in a local Catholic weekly (“La Guida”) mentioned Pope John Paul II and last century ‘s Church martyrdom in Central and Eastern Europe. Here are some extracts.His Holiness, The Church in Central and Eastern Europe have undergone some difficult moments…“In 1945, after the Conference of Yalta, Europe was almost divided into two. An Iron Curtain was raised leaving Central and Eastern Europe to the former Soviet Union. Very difficult years followed, with many martyrs of faith. In countries of Central and Eastern Europe that fell under the Soviet hegemony, life in the Catholic Church was devastated for two decades by Marxist regimes with imprisonment and deportations of many bishops, suppression of seminaries, religious institutes and Catholic schools, and discrimination of believers. The Holy See tried to help those populations also through the pope’s support to the Christians living in those countries. During those years I often accompanied Cardinal Casaroli in many of his trips and in the so- called Church’s Ostpolotik, a cautious political opening to Communist countries in Eastern Europe. In the spring of 1963 came the first contacts in Budapest and Prague, that went on for more than twenty-five years with tiresome negotiations with Hungary and Czechoslovakia, followed by Tito’s Yugoslavia and complex negotiations with Poland. In the meantime, arm race pressure paved the way to the Conference of Helsinki (1975) that marked a favourable moment also for the Holy See request for religious freedom. Cardinal Casaroli’s book titled “The Martyrdom of Patience” is very fit to describe this period”.The Fall of the Berlin Wall is definitely a ray of sunshine in such a complex situation…“Certainly, November 9, 1989 is a day to remember. A couple of years later, in June 1996, I accompanied pope John Paul II to the Brandenburg Gate and in his beautiful speech he said ” this gate has become the gate to freedom. I urge all Berliners and all Germans, to whom I am grateful for the peaceful revolution of the spirit that led to the opening of the Brandenburg Gate: Keep the Spirit burning. Keep this gate open for you and for all other people. Keep it open with the spirit of love, justice and peace! There is no freedom without love”. The Divine Providence worked through many people who have listened to the Pope’s call for human rights. Also president Gorbaciov played an important role in this change. An oak-tree that seemed eternal fell down paving the way for a new historical era for the Church. Freedom entails new opportunities and the Church that does not ask for privileges but only freedom for her children was able to start relations with new governments. In the beginning, it wasn’t even officially present in the former Soviet Union. Today the Holy See is present even in Albania that did not attend the Helsinki Conference and wanted to live under pure Communist rule. I myself went to Tirana to consecrate the new Cathedral Church. “Te Deum” must be sung to welcome this change. God watches over the Church’s history”.Which is the Church’s priority today?“I think missionary activity. John Paul II organized many Synods to convene many bishops. The Pope’s presence in the Universal Church has been very active under John Paul II and modern instruments have helped its far-reaching presence. Today the Church must focus on its missionary activity. The way ahead is long, an enormous task in disseminating the Gospel and God’s Kingdom worldwide”.