On behalf of the World Council of Churches (WCC), a delegation visited Israel and the occupied Palestinian Territories from 27 to 30 June. The delegation met the patriarchs and the leaders of the Christian communities in Jerusalem, and the representatives of church-run institutions and ecumenical organizations. The interlocutors also included Israeli and Palestinian militants campaigning […]

The Christian Churches of Europe met together in Budapest to study the effects of globalization in the countries of Eastern Europe. The conference, which was held in the Hungarian capital from 23 to 29 June, was promoted by the World Council of Churches, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches (ARM) and the Conference of European […]

The final declaration of the world congress for the abolition of capital punishment, held in Strasbourg “It is ever more urgent that the inalienable dignity of human life be universally respected and recognized due to its incalculable value… The universal abolition of the death sentence would bear courageous witness to humanity’s capacity to tackle criminality […]

The European bishops intervene on the issues of bioethics and outline a programme of work for the years ahead Protection of life, evangelization in the countries of Eastern Europe, ecumenical dialogue: these were the three main themes tackled by the secretaries of the Episcopal Conferences of Europe gathered in Prague from 21 to 25 June. […]

The European Parliament met in Strasbourg in plenary session from Monday, 2 July, to Thursday, 5 July. The main points on the agenda were the following: Report of the European Council and declaration of the Commission – Meeting of the European Council of 15/16 June at Göteborg; Declaration of the current Presidency of the Council: […]

Caritas appeals to the EU institutions Some 20% of the citizens of the European Union live on less that 60% of the national average income and 12% of wage-earning workers in the Union are living in conditions of poverty. More than ten million persons depend on social welfare, without which they would not be able […]

The following legislative acts among others entered into force in the course of the last two weeks: Decision of the Secretary General of the Council/commissioner for foreign policy and common security, of 8 June 2001, on the application of the decision of the Council establishing an EU high command (GUCE L 155, 12/6/2001); Joint Position […]

In vista del vertice G8, dal 20 al 22 luglio a Genova, movimenti, associazioni, ma anche episcopati e gruppi di intellettuali cattolici di tutta Europa hanno preso posizione sul tema della globalizzazione e si sono mobilitati. Proviamo ad esplorarne le ragioni Il laicato cattolico sta crescendo, ed è chiamato a crescere sempre di più, proprio […]

Rapporto dettagliato dell’Acs (Aiuto alla Chiesa che soffre) sulle violazioni alla libertà religiosa nel mondo, Europa compresa Qual è la situazione in Europa circa la “libertà religiosa”? A questa domanda risponde, con un’ampia sezione di schede dedicate al vecchio continente, il volume “Rapporto 2001 sulla Libertà Religiosa nel Mondo”, edito dall’associazione Aiuto alla Chiesa che […]

Rifiutarsi di praticare aborti e sterilizzazioni comporta pesanti discriminazioni ai danni dei medici obiettori in diversi Paesi europei. Abbiamo raccolto le loro storie L’obiezione di coscienza deve essere “rispettata, da tutti, specialmente dai legislatori”. Incontrando un gruppo di medici cattolici a Roma, a margine del loro incontro internazionale, il Santo Padre si è fatto portavoce […]