The leaders of the German Social Democrat Party (Spd) and the leaders of the German Bishops Conference (Dbk) met in Berlin yesterday. A release sent out today says that the bishops, led by card. Karl Lehmann, have appreciated the fact the "Bremer draft" (Bremer Entwurf the new Spd program) has give new value to the Churches, to the principles of the Catholic social doctrine and to the Christian image of man, and have urged a more accurate differentiation between the Churches and the lay organisations. However they noticed the contribution given by the Church to education, especially the teaching of the Catholic religion, has not been mentioned. Both parties highlighted the importance of social justice for reforming the social security systems, in order to fill the equality gaps that are already apparent today, for long-term unemployed or unskilled workers". Other subjects included: the family policy as a cross-cutting task to be carried out through shared measures and the parents’ responsibility for their children’s education, to be boosted through appropriate measures, while protecting their freedom of choice, even in other areas of family life.
