Disheartened by the West’s double "no"” “

“We are in an extremely delicate phase for Europe. After the French and Dutch ‘no’, the hand of the eurosceptics is strengthened”, says Cristian Preda , 39 years old, head of the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Bucharest. He warns of “the risk of slowing down or arresting the process of integration”. […]

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romania" "

There’s a new desire ” “

A Church that meets for the rosary even in courtyards or in the apartments of the squalid tower blocks of Bucharest, the enormous grey buildings built by the dictator Ceausescu. A Church that fills the churches with the faithful on Sundays and animates with simple faith the many manifestations of popular devotion. A Church expressed […]

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christian churches" "

The baptism of adults” “

The number of adult baptisms in the Catholic and Evangelical Churches is “constantly growing”: that was the point of departure of the 20th European Conference on Catechumenate (Eurocat 2005), recently held at Vadstena, in Sweden, with a marked “ecumenical character”. 60 delegates from 17 European countries met in the town of St. Bridget, patron of […]

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Lithuania: the archbishop of Kaunas and the sacraments” “

A pastoral Letter underlining the need for a responsible preparation in the sacraments has been published by Archbishop Sigitas Tamkevicius of Kaunas to mark the solemnity of Corpus Christi. “Responsibility for appropriate preparation belongs to the clergy and also to the community of the faithful”, points out the archbishop. He also recalls that “the sacramental […]

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France: An explanatory lexicon” “

A lexicon to clarify the language of life and bioethics, with the title “Lexicon of ambiguous and controversial terms on the family, life and ethical questions” has been published by Téqui (2005). It contains the contributions of 72 experts of various nationalities. In his introduction, Jean-Pierre Ricard, archbishop of Bordeaux and president of the Bishops’ […]

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Slovakia: European meeting for vocations” “

The next European meeting of the National Centres for Vocations will be held at the major diocesan seminary of Banska Bystrica in Slovakia from 30 June to 3 July. The numerous delegates expected to attend the meeting from the various European Bishops’ Conferences will discuss the theme “Jesus in person approached them and walked with […]

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International dailies and periodicals” “

The results of the referenda in France and Holland and the decision of Great Britain to defer its own consultation indefinitely continue to monopolise the European press. In Germany, in particular, the papers are analysing the situation of the EU and De Villepin’s proposal to Schröder for a possible Franco-German union on particular questions. “The […]

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A ‘Pact for Childhood'” “

The Commission presented the European Strategy to protect children’s rights to mark “International Missing Child Day” (25 May), an annual event founded in the USA in 1983 and celebrated in Europe since 2002 on the initiative of the NGO “Child Focus” in collaboration with the European Union. Apart from existing legislative and financial provisions – […]

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Towards terrestrial digital broadcasting” “

The European Union has formalized its own position on the technological debate on radio and television broadcasting. With a Communication presented at the end of May on the acceleration of transition to digital broadcasting, the Commission has formally invited member states to terminate “analogical” radio and television transmissions at the latest by 2012, taking note […]

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Greater coherence in job creation” “

The Economic and Social Committee of the European Union (CESE) has adopted an Opinion relating to the guidelines for employment recently presented by the Commission. It expresses concern about the “lack of coherence” between the various EU strategies for job creation. In particular the document regrets the failure to provide a specific guideline for youth […]

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