More unity and dynamism

Peace, democracy, economic development and human rights are among the pillars of contemporary Europe, whose achievements were obtained also owing to the Community integration process, that celebrates this year its 60th anniversary. From ECSC to the EEC, up to today’s European Union, we have gone a long way. New and challenging goals lie ahead. What could be the EU’s future developments? On the basis of which shared values should we proceed? Which obstacles should be avoided? Msgr. Gianni Ambrosio, bishop of Piacenza-Bobbio, has “breathed” European air since the time of his studies in Social Sciences at the Institut Catholique in Paris and those in Sociology of Religions at the Ecole Pratique des Hautes Etudes at the Sorbonne. He is a member of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Community (COMECE), with headquarters in Brussels. Gianni Borsa met him for SIR Europe. Msgr. Ambrosio, what is the value of the Community building in the era of globalization? “The idea of a pacified and united Europe gained ground on the aftermath of World War Two with the intention of overcoming nationalisms and reconciling populations divided by immense tragedies. Sixty years later, we are living in an area in which we are free to grow, study, work, travel, and seek new opportunities. United Europe is the result of a project conceived by Catholic politicians of the stature of Robert Schuman, Alcide De Gasperi and Konrad Adenauer. But while there has been great progress, it is equally true that the European project cannot be carried out all at once. It must progress step by step, through a ‘de facto’ solidarity. Our Europe is still fragile, as the difficulties encountered in the attempt to implement a common vision on concrete problems, involving all Europeans, are a proof of. We cannot conclude that the results that have been achieved entail the ability to address major challenges in a unitary manner. It is necessary to constantly refer to the project of the founding fathers aimed the EU’s close-knit inter-relations and at stepping up its influence at global level”. What should EU27 consider as the priorities, given the ongoing historical context? “Some targets have a specific economic and social bearing, i.e. the financial crisis, unemployment, and energy policy. Other targets are more political, take the entire realm of European foreign policy, that is lagging behind. Moreover, some questions specifically concern citizens’ lives, such as organized crime, immigration, racism… but apart from the goals, whereby a basic agreement could be reached, it is necessary to reconsider the means aimed at their implementation. It is necessary to step up cohesion, as European countries cannot address these challenges on their own. Creating a networked system is thus crucial. And there is an equal need for greater dynamism”.In what sense?“Current challenges cannot be addressed by a slow-paced, rigid and bureaucratic Europe. Europe needs real dynamism: it is the only way to ensure wellbeing and solidarity, promoting growth, employment and social cohesion”. The Church has accompanied and sustained the journey of the Community since its origins, in the 1950s, up to the present EU. What do you expect now from the “Common Home”? “Perhaps many people have thought – and continue to think – that the Church, in particular with the Papal Magisterium, would ask Europe to simply look at the past, for example to the reference to Christian roots. For some elite groups united Europe can and should do without these ‘stale ideas’. But precisely because it is geared towards its very own renewal, projected towards the future, Europe cannot deny its origins, its very identity. The memory of the past is decisive for the development of the driving ideal of the Europe of today and of tomorrow. A community of values – this is the European project – that neglects its founding principles, before apostatising from itself risks apostatizing from God: it is the wise and suffered admonition of Benedict XVI to Europe. Let’s not forget that what appears to belong to a distant past is in fact the most precious patrimony of contemporary Europe”.From your observatory in Brussels (COMECE) did you identify a “Europe that is growing from the grassroots”, capable of involving local communities and regions, that gives space to its citizens? Or is there still a long way to go in this direction? “There is still a long way to go. It is ever more evident that most problems can no longer be addressed by a single Member State. For this purpose European social and economic convergence must become a target, within a global perspective. And even though such convergence is not yet to be seen, it can become a long-term target achieved with the support of dynamism at grassroots level, promoted by social and cultural contexts, by local communities. In this sense the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences acts as the spokesperson of collective claims to European institutions”.