CHURCHES IN BRIEF
England: apostolic nuncio to leaveThe Apostolic Nuncio to England Archbishop Faustino Sainz Muñoz is retiring for reasons of health. He announced his departure to the English Catholic bishops meeting in plenary assembly. “My illness is very serious – he said – and so this is my last meeting with you. The chemotherapy continues and does not allow me to continue my mission here. It has been agreed that I will leave the country on 5 December. I do not know when my successor will come, all I can tell you is that he is not from Spain”. In his message, the Nuncio recalled “two great events” that had a big impact on the life of the Catholic Church in England: the Ad Limina visit and the recent visit of the Holy Father to this country. “I was very glad – the Archbishop continued – to be present for such events of great importance. The Pope’s humility, his message and his gentle presence made it so successful”. “When I arrived [in England] five and half years ago, I took my mission from Cardinal Casiroli’s words to me: To make visible the pastoral heart of the Holy Father”. And he added: “The Papal Visit showed that the Catholic Church in this country is strong. I can assure you that the Catholic community of the UK will always be in my heart. Thank you to every one of you”. Archbishop Sainz Muñoz was appointed Apostolic Nuncio for England and Wales by John Paul II in 2004.Czech Republic: Archbishop Zollitsch in Prague On the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the exchange of letters between the Czech and German Bishops’ Conference, the chairman of the German bishops (DBK) Archbishop Robert Zollitsch is making a two-day visit to the Czech capital, Prague. A series of meetings is planned, including one with representatives of the German-speaking Catholic community. The culmination of the trip will come today, with a commemoration of the exchange of letters that marked the beginning of the reconciliation between Germans, Czechs and Slovaks in 1990. The celebration will be officiated jointly by Archbishop Zollitsch and the chairman of the Czech Bishops’ Conference, Archbishop Dominik Duka. Together, the representatives of the bishops of the two countries will pay tribute to the then archbishop of Prague, Cardinal Frantiek Tomáek, who on 11 January 1990, just after the fall of Communism, had published a declaration for the reconciliation of the peoples of the former Czechoslovakia and Germany and for a common responsibility for the future of Europe. To this document the German bishops replied on 8 March of the same year, in a letter in which they recalled “with shame the injustice suffered by the Czechs with the forced and planned deportation, conducted from 1938 on” and expressed sorrow “for the Czechs and Slovaks who lost their lives as victims of the Nazi terror”.France: bishops’ message to Muslims”Best wishes for Eid El Adha”: Mgr. Michel Santier, Bishop of Créteil and chairman of the Council for Interfaith Relations, and Father Christophe Roucou, Director of the National Service for Relations with Islam, have sent a message of good wishes to the Muslims of France, who celebrated in recent days the feast of the Sacrifice, Eid, commemorating the gesture of Abraham, Ibrahim, who was called by God to sacrifice his son Ishmael. Abraham – says the message – is “a father in the faith of Jewish, Christian and Muslim believers”. “On this day of celebration and prayer for which many of our brothers and sisters are gathered together in making a pilgrimage to Mecca, may we, on both sides, both Christians and Muslims, ask God to help us live in mutual peace, justice and respect for all convictions. The recent massacres in Iraq, of priests and Christians gathered in prayer in a church in Baghdad, are a terrible tragedy which, unfortunately, strengthens our fears and seems to justify those who believe that brotherly relations between Muslims and Christians are impossible. Many French Muslim leaders have strongly condemned these insensate acts. Like you, we too feel the evil committed by those who exploit Islam for terrorist purposes. We cannot forget that terrorism has caused numerous victims also among the Muslim population in Iraq. With you, we appeal to the governments that have the responsibility to ensure that all Iraqis may finally live in peace. We pray to God that He may convert our hearts, so that together in our country we may join together in promoting initiatives aimed at reducing fear, and give us the strength to forge, wherever we live, links of brotherhood and peace between believers of different religious traditions and with all our fellow-citizens. We pray that His Spirit may help us to hope against hope”.
