"The Holy Father comforted us both as bishops and as believers. From him, we have received the authoritative word of encouragement that we had asked him for. I hope his speech will be read and studied in all the Churches of the member states". With these words, mgr. Adrianus van Luyn, president of Comece, commented, at the press conference, the meeting that he had this morning with Benedict XVI, who received in audience in the Vatican the participants in the Congress promoted by Comece which ends in Rome tomorrow". According to the president of Comece, the Pope’s one is also "a warning to take seriously the identity of Europe, of which Christianity is a fundamental part"; disowning such identity would be tantamount to "an apostasy of our human conscience". As he outlined the results of the Congress, which is ending tomorrow, mgr. Van Luyn said he is very content about the "dialogue established between the participants" and "about the final Message". In particular, with reference to some reports, the president of Comece lingered on the "need to build bridges both within Europe and towards the poorest continents". This, he concluded, "is the challenge" that awaits us, "with a view to the common good, that does not apply to us only but to the whole world".
