Turkey: a very active minority

Young people in Turkey are in ferment. Catholics there are only a tiny minority, but events in preparation for World Youth Day are not lacking. The Turkish Episcopal Conference reports that “a preparatory meeting for the WYD attended by young people from various communities in the country – Catholic Latins, Catholic Armenians, Catholic Syrians and […]

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United Kingdom: searching for God, far from the Church” “

They seek God, but not in the Church. They’re the young Catholics of England and Wales, aged between twenty and thirty, all of them searching for God. Yet “they don’t go to Church on Sundays, they don’t participate in the services that have always punctuated the life of the Church”, says Vladimir Felzmann, chaplain to […]

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Greece: on the road towards WYD” “

“ Our youngsters have been participating in World Youth Days for at least ten years. The greatest participation was during the Holy Year in Rome. But we’ll also be present at Toronto“. So declares Father Thedore Kontidis, national head of the youth pastoral service of the Greek Episcopal Conference who has described for us the […]

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A service to unity

The 10th Symposium of European bishops, to be held under the auspices of the CCEE (Council of the European Episcopal Conferences) in Rome from 24 to 28 April, will also be attended by a delegation of the KEK (a European umbrella organization representing 127 Churches of Orthodox, Anglican, Protestant and Old-Catholic tradition). The delegation will […]

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immigration

” “Integration in schools

“The number of foreign students is increasing in Italy. There are almost 150,000, approximately 2% of the whole school population”, explained Marco Demarie , director of the Giovanni Agnelli Foundation, on opening the proceedings of the international conference “Community in Schools: Immigration and Schooling in Italy and in Europe” held over the last few days […]

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Austria

” “Believers under the spotlight

The plenary assembly of Austrian bishops, under the presidency of Cardinal Christopher Schönborn, opened in the Voralberg, close to the Liechstenstein frontier, on the 19th March and is due to end on the 21st. Many issues are on the agenda: the questions linked to European integration, in particular the challenges posed by the reunification of […]

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EU Council

” “Reforming the economy

More concise than usual, the conclusions of the European Council, held in Barcelona on 15 and 16 March, revolve around seven key points: 1) energy, 2) economic reforms, 3) sustainable development, 4) “Galileo” project, 5) financial markets, 6) steel war, 7) peace in the Middle East. 1) The liberalization of the gas and electricity markets […]

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COMECE: the Resolution of the EP on woman lacks seriousness” “

“The threat to women living under fundamentalist regimes that abuse their dignity and their rights is a serious and important question. Nonetheless, the resolution presented by Maria Izquierdo Rojo and adopted by the European Parliament does not tackle the question with the precision, respect and responsibility it deserves“. That is the view expressed by COMECE […]

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Europe: "impossible to build the Union without culture"” “

“It’s impossible to build the European Union without culture”. So said Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the Holy See’s Council for Culture, speaking at its plenary Assembly in Rome (14-16 March). The theme of discussion at this year’s assembly was: “Transmitting the faith to the heart of cultures: ‘Novo millennio ineunte'”. “In this period – […]

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The work of the Commission of human rights” “

The UN Commission of human rights opened its current session, which is due to last six weeks in the UN headquarters in Geneva (Switzerland) on 18 March. Over 3,500 delegates are due to attend. The Commission is the main organ of the United Nations in the sphere of human rights. It was created by the […]

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