Wednesday, December 26, 2007

3 Years After Tsunami: Caritas Focuses on Preparedness

SUMATRA, Indonesia, DEC. 25, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Three years after the deadly 2004 tsunami that hit Asia, Caritas Internationalis said the majority of its reconstruction projects are completed.

The Dec. 26, 2004, natural disaster killed more than 225,000 people in 11 countries when an ocean earthquake triggered a series of devastating sea waves along the coasts of the Indian Ocean.

The Caritas agency says its focus is now preparing coastal communities on how to respond should disaster strike again.

The agency's $485 million program -- planned to be spent over five years -- provided immediate relief, then went to building homes and restoring livelihoods. Two-thirds of the initial budget has been spent.

Caritas Secretary-General Lesley Anne Knight said: "Three years after the devastating tsunami, Caritas has helped tens of thousands of survivors reconstruct their homes and their lives.

"The scale of destruction across multiple countries was unprecedented. But it has been made possible because Caritas was on the ground before, during and after the emergency.

"We know that disaster preparedness can save thousands of lives. Caritas is now looking at how to prevent such major loss of lives in any future disaster by training communities in the best ways to respond."

Tuesday, December 18, 2007

Holy See on a World Fit for Children

Holy See on a World Fit for Children
"The Opportunity to Pause and Assess Where We Stand Today"

NEW YORK, DEC. 17, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, gave Thursday to the plenary session of the U.N. General Assembly on the follow-up of the 2002 Special Session on children.

* * *

Mr President,

This commemorative high-level plenary meeting gives us the opportunity to pause and assess where we stand today with respect to the commitment to create a world fit for children, made during the 2002 special session for children.

The Convention of the Rights of the Child remains the standard in the promotion and protection of the rights of the child. It contains such fundamental principles as the rights of the child before as well as after birth, the family as the natural environment for the growth and education of children, and the right of the child to the best health care and education possible.

Echoing the principles enshrined in the said Convention, the 2002 special session reaffirms the family as the basic unit of society, providing the best environment for children to acquire knowledge, cultivate good qualities and develop positive attitudes to become responsible citizens. It is, therefore, in everyone's interest to motivate parents to take personal responsibility in the education of their children and strengthen the family.

Acting on its perennial conviction that education lies at the heart of the development of every child, today the Catholic Church runs more than two hundred and fifty thousand schools in all continents, with three and a half million teachers educating forty-two million students. To help every child exercise the right to education, many of these schools are in some of the most challenging locations where otherwise children would be completely left behind, such as remote villages, deprived inner cities, conflict zones, refugee camps and waste dumping grounds.

Recognizing that chronic poverty remains the single biggest obstacle to meeting the needs of children, helping working children through education is key to empowering them to break the cycle of extreme poverty and raise awareness of their self-worth and dignity. Ways must be found to offer them free basic education and training, and integrate them into the formal educational system in every way possible.

The commitment of the Holy See in the area of protecting children and their families from the impact of HIV/AIDS is illustrated by the thousands of institutions engaged in the care and education of orphans, prevention and awareness campaigns, the distribution of antiretroviral drugs, basic health care and nutrition, the prevention of mother-to-child viral transmission, the fight against stigma, and the empowerment of peoples living with HIV/AIDS to be protagonists in the fight against the epidemic.

However, while continuing the focus on HIV/AIDS, we must enhance our health care policies on even more common killer diseases, such as malaria and tuberculosis.

An even more fundamental challenge is the lack of access of children and mothers to basic health care and sanitation. As the Secretary-General recently stated, sanitation is one of the most overlooked and underserved basic human needs, and international efforts to deliver on this area have been "lackluster". Children are the first victims of such an "unacceptable situation". This neglect or lack of focus on basic health care is very costly, given that basic medical prevention is often one of the most cost effective and successful ways of improving the health and stability of society.

My delegation earnestly hopes that the commitments renewed or made in the course of this plenary are not mere declarations of good intentions or objectives for which to aspire, but steadfast commitments to uphold, so that a world truly fit for children can at last become a reality.

Thank you, Mr. President.

Tuesday, December 11, 2007

World Day of Peace Message for 2008

Pope’s World Day of Peace Message for 2008: The Human Family, A Community of Peace. To read the entire text, go to: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/peace/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20071208_xli-world-day-peace_en.html.

Saturday, December 8, 2007

Holy See on Migrant Workers

Holy See on Migrant Workers
"A Comprehensive Perspective Is Needed"

GENEVA, DEC. 7, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Archbishop Silvano Tomasi, permanent observer of the Holy See to the Office of the United Nations and Specialized Institutions in Geneva, gave at the 94th Council Session of the International Organization of Migration. The session was held Nov. 27-30 in Geneva.

* * *

Mr. President,

1. The diversity of population movements around the world has increasingly caught the attention of international organizations and States: temporary and permanent migrant workers, refugees, asylum seekers, internally displaced persons, trafficked women and men, multinational corporations transferred personnel. New categories emerge like internal and cross-borders' displaced people forced to move by the degradation of the environment, certain types of development projects and climate change.

The Delegation of the Holy See appreciates the strategic choice made by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) to address the migratory phenomenon from "an integral and holistic perspective" while focusing on its specific mandate. While targeted responses render effective the protection and assistance due to all uprooted persons, a comprehensive perspective is needed. In fact, today's economic and political interdependence has shown that international migrations have become a structural component of modern societies.

In particular, the global labor market attracts workers from an ever wider range of countries, making the migration for work the largest segment of all population movements. People vote with their feet, searching to meet their aspirations for security and a decent life for themselves and their families.

2. Estimates now give more than 200 million persons in the world living and working in countries different than the one in which they were born or were citizens and the 90 million workers among them are almost three percent of the 3 billion strong labor force. The numbers, in a way, are the tip of the iceberg revealing the complexity of a phenomenon that affects countries of origin, transit and destination, laws and administrative regulations, cultural, religious and social modalities of coexistence. A cooperative approach to migrations becomes unavoidable and it should be inclusive of States, intergovernmental bodies, civil society.

Nongovernmental organizations and faith-communities in particular, with their ear to the ground and a geographically diversified experience, can provide insights and collaboration both in policy formation and in operational assistance. This Delegation appreciates as a positive development the formalized process for exchange of views and information on the part of the Heads of United Nations' agencies with responsibility for one or the other aspect of human mobility. But coherence among the various players seems still at an initial stage and it would be beneficial if some participation of representatives of migrants' organizations and interests would be included at all levels of policy development.

3. Migrant workers, skilled and unskilled, have taken central place in many current debates. This type of migration is looked at as a positive force for development of countries of origin, especially through the billions of dollars in remittances sent home by the migrants -- $167 billion sent to developing countries in 2005 -- as well for the economy of receiving countries.

In fact, for a growing number of countries, immigrants have become a necessity to compensate for the dwindling workforce and for their demographic deficit. But the pragmatic advantages accepted through the admission of migrants are on several occasions overshadowed by an ambivalent attitude that is manifest in media and public opinion that allow for stereotyping and negative generalizations of newcomers. Fairness in recognizing the contribution immigrants make can serve as a good base for their integration.

4. Two important dimensions of contemporary migrations are not adequately discussed and paid attention to in the formulation of policies: the victims of migration flows and the priority that persons have over the economy. The whole system of protection and of human rights is relegated to a secondary supporting role instead of serving as it was intended, as an assurance that the dignity of all human persons must take precedence.

Just a few days ago, 64 migrants drowned before the shores of Yemen, where the previous month another 66 desperate asylum seekers had died or were missing after being thrown overboard by traffickers. Some media report that about 500 persons have met their death this year in the dangerous enterprise of crossing illegally from Mexico into the United States. As many as 6,000 people have died or disappeared in 2006 alone just trying to cross the waters from the West coast of Africa to the Canary Islands. Unaccompanied children are found in these traumatic flows across seas and borders. New creative forms of prevention, of humanitarian assistance and protection mechanisms are called for.

5. An inclusive approach that takes into account all components of the migrants' journey: the decisions to emigrate and of how many immigrants to admit; the modalities of participation of various types of migrants in the host society; the role played by migrants in the economic development and in society; the migrants' entitlement to protection and the exercise of their rights, seems the appropriate way to proceed. Present political trends appear clear and slanted in the direction of responding to the more emotional and vocal demands of public opinion for control and integration. In the long run, however, a fair and effective solution will come from a comprehensive approach that embraces all policy components: the rights of the state and of the receiving community, of the migrants, and of the international common good.

A growing consensus supports the convenience of such an inclusive approach and the necessity to pay more attention to migrants themselves and not only to their economic role as temporary workforce or permanent settlers. International treaties and conventions that directly, or in a general way, include references to the rights of migrants have adopted the centrality of the human person as their supporting base. In a parallel way, the social teaching of the Catholic Church, and in fact that of all religious traditions, looks at migrants as human beings in the first place and then as citizens or guests, or as economic and cultural agents.

The ethical dimension in the discussion of migration results from a larger anthropological framework in which secular and religious people can find a common ground in order to address the inevitable tension between different principles. In the case of migrants, this tension appears in the moral obligations of governments to ensure the safety and well-being of their own populations and a more universal ethic that values the well-being of all mankind and of each person. In this sense, the High Level Dialogue on Migration and Development could state: "Respect for the fundamental rights and freedoms of all migrants was considered essential for reaping the full benefits of international migration."

Mr. President,

6. As the concerted effort to refine ways and means to manage the different aspects of human mobility moves forward, the Delegation of the Holy See considers it more urgent to muster the political will to ratify and implement the human rights' instruments already developed and to make them the foundation of a truly humane and comprehensive policy. Education can play a major role. Migrants, aware of their rights, can be more secure in offering their services and talents and the receiving community, well informed and respectful of these rights, will feel freer in extending its solidarity in order to build together a common future.

[Original text: English]

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Pope's Address to Catholic NGOs

Pope's Address to Catholic NGOs
"Called to Take Part in Public Life in a Personal Capacity"

VATICAN CITY, DEC. 2, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address Benedict XVI gave Saturday upon receiving in audience participants in the Forum of Catholic-Inspired Nongovernmental Organizations.

* * *

Your Excellencies,
Representatives of the Holy See to International Organizations,
Dear Friends,

I am pleased to greet all of you who are assembled in Rome to reflect on the contribution which Catholic-inspired Non-governmental Organizations can offer, in close collaboration with the Holy See, to the solution of the many problems and challenges associated with the various activities of the United Nations and other international and regional organizations. To each of you I offer a cordial welcome. In a particular way I thank the Substitute of the Secretariat of State, who has graciously interpreted your common sentiments, while at the same time informing me of the goals of your Forum. I also greet the young representative of the Non-governmental Organizations present.

Taking part in this important meeting are representatives of groups long associated with the presence and activity of the Catholic laity at the international level, along with members of other, more recent groups which have come into being as part of the current process of global integration. Also present are groups mainly committed to advocacy, and others chiefly concerned with the concrete management of cooperative projects promoting development. Some of your organizations are recognized by the Church as public and private associations of the lay faithful, others share in the charism of certain institutes of consecrated life, while still others enjoy only civil recognition and include non-Catholics and non-Christians among their members. All of you, however, have in common a passion for promoting human dignity. This same passion has constantly inspired the activity of the Holy See in the international community. The real reason for the present meeting, then, is to express gratitude and appreciation for what you are doing in active collaboration with the papal representatives to international organizations. In addition, this meeting seeks to foster a spirit of cooperation among your organizations and consequently the effectiveness of your common activity on behalf of the integral good of the human person and of all humanity.

This unity of purpose can only be achieved through a variety of roles and activities. The multilateral diplomacy of the Holy See, for the most part, strives to reaffirm the great fundamental principles of international life, since the Church’s specific contribution consists in helping "to form consciences in political life and to stimulate greater insight into the authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness to act accordingly" ("Deus Caritas Est," 28). On the other hand, "the direct duty to work for a just ordering of society is proper to the lay faithful" -- and in the context of international life this includes Christian diplomats and members of Non-governmental Organizations -- who "are called to take part in public life in a personal capacity" and "to configure social life correctly, respecting its legitimate autonomy and cooperating with other citizens according to their respective competences and fulfilling their own responsibility" (ibid., 29).

International cooperation between governments, which was already emerging at the end of the nineteenth century and which grew steadily throughout the last century despite the tragic disruption of two world wars, has significantly contributed towards the creation of a more just international order. In this regard, we can look with satisfaction to achievements such as the universal recognition of the juridical and political primacy of human rights, the adoption of shared goals regarding the full enjoyment of economic and social rights by all the earth’s inhabitants, the efforts being made to develop a just global economy and, more recently, the protection of the environment and the promotion of intercultural dialogue.

At the same time, international discussions often seem marked by a relativistic logic which would consider as the sole guarantee of peaceful coexistence between peoples a refusal to admit the truth about man and his dignity, to say nothing of the possibility of an ethics based on recognition of the natural moral law. This has led, in effect, to the imposition of a notion of law and politics which ultimately makes consensus between states -- a consensus conditioned at times by short-term interests or manipulated by ideological pressure -- the only real basis of international norms. The bitter fruits of this relativistic logic are sadly evident: we think, for example, of the attempt to consider as human rights the consequences of certain self-centred lifestyles; a lack of concern for the economic and social needs of the poorer nations; contempt for humanitarian law, and a selective defence of human rights. It is my hope that your study and reflection during these days will result in more effective ways of making the Church’s social doctrine better known and accepted on the international level. I encourage you, then, to counter relativism creatively by presenting the great truths about man’s innate dignity and the rights which are derived from that dignity. This in turn will contribute to the forging of a more adequate response to the many issues being discussed today in the international forum. Above all, it will help to advance specific initiatives marked by a spirit of solidarity and freedom.

What is needed, in fact, is a spirit of solidarity conducive for promoting as a body those ethical principles which, by their very nature and their role as the basis of social life, remain non-negotiable. A spirit of solidarity imbued with a strong sense of fraternal love leads to a better appreciation of the initiatives of others and a deeper desire to cooperate with them. Thanks to this spirit, one will always, whenever it is useful or necessary, work in collaboration either with the various non-governmental organizations or the representatives of the Holy See, with due respect for their differences of nature, institutional ends and methods of operation. On the other hand, an authentic spirit of freedom, lived in solidarity, will help the initiative of the members of non-governmental organization to create a broad gamut of new approaches and solutions with regard to those temporal affairs which God has left to the free and responsible judgement of every individual. When experienced in solidarity, legitimate pluralism and diversity will lead not to division and competition, but to ever greater effectiveness. The activities of your organizations will bear genuine fruit provided they remain faithful to the Church’s magisterium, anchored in communion with her pastors and above all with the successor of Peter, and meet in a spirit of prudent openness the challenges of the present moment.

Dear friends, I thank you once again for your presence today and for your dedicated efforts to advance the cause of justice and peace within the human family. Assuring you of a special remembrance in my prayers, I invoke upon you, and the organizations you represent, the maternal protection of Mary, Queen of the World. To you, your families and your associates, I cordially impart my Apostolic Blessing.

[Original text: English]

© Copyright 2007 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Thursday, November 29, 2007

JAN 13, 2008: Holy Father's Message for World Day of Migrants and Refugees

MESSAGE OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI
FOR THE 94th WORLD DAY OF MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES
(13 January 2008)

Young Migrants

The theme of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees invites us this year to reflect in particular on young migrants. As a matter of fact, the daily news often speaks about them. The vast globalization process underway around the world brings a need for mobility, which also induces many young people to emigrate and live far from their families and their countries. The result is that many times the young people endowed with the best intellectual resources leave their countries of origin, while in the countries that receive the migrants, laws are in force that make their actual insertion difficult. In fact, the phenomenon of emigration is becoming ever more widespread and includes a growing number of people from every social condition. Rightly, therefore, the public institutions, humanitarian organizations and also the Catholic Church are dedicating many of their resources to helping these people in difficulty.

For the young migrants, the problems of the so-called “difficulty of dual belonging” seem to be felt in a particular way: on the one hand, they feel a strong need to not lose their culture of origin, while on the other, the understandable desire emerges in them to be inserted organically into the society that receives them, but without this implying a complete assimilation and the resulting loss of their ancestral traditions. Among the young people, there are also girls who fall victim more easily to exploitation, moral forms of blackmail, and even abuses of all kinds. What can we say, then, about the adolescents, the unaccompanied minors that make up a category at risk among those who ask for asylum? These boys and girls often end up on the street abandoned to themselves and prey to unscrupulous exploiters who often transform them into the object of physical, moral and sexual violence.

Next, looking more closely at the sector of forced migrants, refugees and the victims of human trafficking, we unhappily find many children and adolescents too. On this subject it is impossible to remain silent before the distressing images of the great refugee camps present in different parts of the world. How can we not think that these little beings have come into the world with the same legitimate expectations of happiness as the others? And, at the same time, how can we not remember that childhood and adolescence are fundamentally important stages for the development of a man and a woman that require stability, serenity and security? These children and adolescents have only had as their life experience the permanent, compulsory “camps” where they are segregated, far from inhabited towns, with no possibility normally to attend school. How can they look to the future with confidence? While it is true that much is being done for them, even greater commitment is still needed to help them by creating suitable hospitality and formative structures.

Precisely from this perspective the question is raised of how to respond to the expectations of the young migrants? What can be done to help them? Of course, it is necessary to aim first of all at support for the family and schools. But how complex the situations are, and how numerous the difficulties these young people encounter in their family and school contexts! In families, the traditional roles that existed in the countries of origin have broken down, and a clash is often seen between parents still tied to their culture and children quickly acculturated in the new social contexts. Likewise, the difficulty should not be underestimated which the young people find in getting inserted into the educational course of study in force in the country where they are hosted. Therefore, the scholastic system itself should take their conditions into consideration and provide specific formative paths of integration for the immigrant boys and girls that are suited to their needs. The commitment will also be important to create a climate of mutual respect and dialogue among all the students in the classrooms based on the universal principles and values that are common to all cultures. Everyone’s commitment—teachers, families and students—will surely contribute to helping the young migrants to face in the best way possible the challenge of integration and offer them the possibility to acquire what can aid their human, cultural and professional formation. This holds even more for the young refugees for whom adequate programs will have to be prepared, both in the scholastic and the work contexts, in order to guarantee their preparation and provide the necessary bases for a correct insertion into the new social, cultural and professional world.

The Church looks with very particular attention at the world of migrants and asks those who have received a Christian formation in their countries of origin to make this heritage of faith and evangelical values bear fruit in order to offer a consistent witness in the different life contexts. Precisely in this regard, I invite the ecclesial host communities to welcome the young and very young people with their parents with sympathy, and to try to understand the vicissitudes of their lives and favor their insertion.

Then, among the migrants, as I wrote in last year’s Message, there is one category to consider in a special way: the students from other countries who because of their studies, are far from home. Their number is growing constantly: they are young people who need a specific pastoral care because they are not just students, like all the rest, but also temporary migrants. They often feel alone under the pressure of their studies and sometimes they are also constricted by economic difficulties. The Church, in her maternal concern, looks at them with affection and tries to put specific pastoral and social interventions into action that will take the great resources of their youth into consideration. It is necessary to help them find a way to open up to the dynamism of interculturality and be enriched in their contact with other students of different cultures and religions. For young Christians, this study and formation experience can be a useful area for the maturation of their faith, a stimulus to be open to the universalism that is a constitutive element of the Catholic Church.

Dear young migrants, prepare yourselves to build together your young peers a more just and fraternal society by fulfilling your duties scrupulously and seriously towards your families and the State. Be respectful of the laws and never let yourselves be carried away by hatred and violence. Try instead to be protagonists as of now of a world where understanding and solidarity, justice and peace will reign. To you, in particular, young believers, I ask you to profit from your period of studies to grow in knowledge and love of Christ. Jesus wants you to be his true friends, and for this it is necessary for you to cultivate a close relationship with Him constantly in prayer and docile listening to his Word. He wants you to be his witnesses, and for this it is necessary for you to be committed to living the Gospel courageously and expressing it in concrete acts of love of God and generous service to your brothers and sisters. The Church needs you too and is counting on your contribution. You can play a very providential role in the current context of evangelization. Coming from different cultures, but all united by belonging to the one Church of Christ, you can show that the Gospel is alive and suited to every situation; it is an old and ever new message. It is a word of hope and salvation for the people of all races and cultures, of all ages and eras.

To Mary, the Mother of all humanity, and to Joseph, her most chaste spouse, who were both refugees together with Jesus in Egypt, I entrust each one of you, your families, those who take care of the vast world of young migrants in various ways, the volunteers and pastoral workers that are by your side with their willingness and friendly support.

May the Lord always be close to you and your families so that together you can overcome the obstacles and the material and spiritual difficulties you encounter on your way. I accompany these wishes with a special Apostolic Blessing for each one of you and for those who are dear to you.

From the Vatican, October 18, 2007

BENEDICTUS PP. XVI

© Copyright 2007 - Libreria Editrice Vaticana

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/messages/migration/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20071018_world-migrants-day_en.html

Caritas President Cardinal Rodriguez urges religious leaders to do more on HIV

English

Embargoed until 29 November 2007


Caritas President Cardinal Rodriguez urges religious leaders to do more on HIV

Vatican City, 29 November 2007 - Caritas Internationalis President Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga says religious leaders must be at the forefront of responding to HIV and AIDS.

In a statement to mark World AIDS Day, the Caritas President says that religious leaders can do this by helping to spread accurate information and promoting responsible behaviour to halt the spread of the virus.

Cardinal Rodriguez said, "I welcome the inspiration and motivation provided by the 2007 Worlds AIDS Day theme of 'Take the Lead. Stop AIDS. Keep the Promise'. Such leadership must be taken on all levels of society in order to respond justly and comprehensively to the global HIV pandemic.

"Religious leaders can, should, and do exercise a leadership role by facilitating accurate information and by promoting responsible behaviour to prevent the further spread of HIV, by giving leadership on providing health, social, and pastoral service to people affected by or vulnerable to the pandemic, and making tangible efforts to eliminate the irrational fear, stigma, and discrimination resulting from this global health challenge.

"I am pleased to note that 2007 marks the 20th year since Caritas made and has kept the promise to accompany the leadership of the Catholic Church in its comprehensive response to AIDS."

Progress has been made in recent years in tackling the global HIV crisis, including expanded access to treatment and increased funding and political will at national and international level. Still, the pandemic is outpacing the response.

UNAIDS and the World Health Organisation (WHO) estimate that 33.2 million people worldwide are living with HIV. In 2007, 2.5 million people - mainly from poorer countries - became infected with the virus, while 2.1 million people died from AIDS-related illnesses.

Caritas says religious leaders can play an important role, too, in demanding greater leadership, political action, and accountability from governments in making universal access to prevention, treatment, care, and support by 2010 a reality.

Faith-based organisations provide the majority of care to people living with HIV, as much as 70 percent in some sub-Saharan African countries. Over the years, Caritas has focused on building up the Catholic Church's response by contributing technical expertise in the design of HIV programmes, training, research, advocacy, and information sharing on best practises, and by linking up this response across the international healthcare community.

Please contact Patrick Nicholson at 0039 06 698 79725 or 0039 334 3590700 or nicholson@caritas.va

Spanish

Embargoed until 29 November 2007

El Presidente de Caritas exhorta a los líderes religiosos para un mayor empeño en la lucha contra el SIDA

Ciudad del Vaticano, 29 de noviembre 2007 - El Presidente de Caritas Internationalis, el Cardinal Óscar Andrés Rodríguez Maradiaga, exhorta a los líderes religiosos para que estén siempre en la vanguardia de la lucha contra el VIH y el SIDA.

En unas declaraciones, en ocasión del Día Mundial del SIDA, el Presidente de Caritas Internationalis asegura que los líderes religiosos pueden ayudar a difundir información detallada y a promover un comportamiento responsable, con el fin de frenar la difusión del virus.

El Cardinal Rodríguez afirma: "Es de particular inspiración y motivación el tema elegido este año para conmemorar el Día Mundial del SIDA: 'Asume el liderazgo. Detener el SIDA. Mantener la promesa'. Ese liderazgo tiene que ser asumido en todos los planos de la sociedad, con el fin de responder de manera adecuada y exhaustiva a la pandemia del VIH."

"Los líderes religiosos pueden, y deben, ejercer un rol relevante, facilitando información minuciosa y promoviendo un comportamiento responsable, en la prevención de la ulterior difusión del VIH. Deben ser líderes en la provisión de servicios de salud y pastorales a los afectados por o vulnerables a la pandemia. Además, hay que hacer tangibles los esfuerzos para eliminar el temor irracional, el estigma y la discriminación, derivados de este reto a la salud mundial."

"He notado con satisfacción que el 2007 marca el 20.º año desde que Caritas hizo, y todavía mantiene, la promesa de acompañar a los líderes de la Iglesia católica en su respuesta exhaustiva al SIDA."

Ha habido progresos en los últimos años, en nuestra lucha mundial contra el SIDA, como un mayor acceso al tratamiento y el incremento de fondos, así como voluntad política, en ámbito nacional e internacional. Aunque la difusión de la pandemia es todavía mayor que la respuesta.

ONUSIDA y la Organización Mundial de la Salud (OMS) estiman que 33,2 millones de personas de todo el mundo viven con el VIH. En el 2007, 2,5 millones de personas - sobre todo en los países más pobres - se contagiaron, mientras 2,1 millones de personas murieron a causa de enfermedades relacionadas con el SIDA.

Para Caritas, los líderes religiosos pueden desempeñar un rol importante también, exigiendo mayor liderazgo, acción política y responsabilidad de los gobiernos, haciendo realidad el acceso universal a la prevención, los tratamientos, la asistencia y la ayuda para 2010.

Las organizaciones confesionales son la que ofrecen la mayor parte de la asistencia a las personas que viven con el VIH, tanto como el 70% en los países del África subsahariana. Con los años, Caritas se ha centrado en consolidar la respuesta de la Iglesia católica, contribuyendo con nuestras capacidades en el diseño de programas sobre el VIH, capacitación, investigación, incidencia e información sobre mejores prácticas, así como vinculando esta respuesta a toda la comunidad internacional de la asistencia sanitaria.

Contactar: Patrick Nicholson - 0039 06 698 797 25; 0039 334 3590 700 o nicholson@caritas.va

French

Embargoed until 29 November 2007

Le Président de Caritas, le cardinal Rodriguez, exhorte les dirigeants religieux à faire davantage pour lutter contre le VIH

Cité du Vatican, le 29 novembre 2007 - Le Président de Caritas Internationalis, le cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, estime que les dirigeants religieux doivent être au tout premier rang de la lutte contre le VIH et le sida.

Dans une déclaration marquant la Journée mondiale du sida, le Président de Caritas a expliqué que, pour ce faire, les dirigeants religieux devaient contribuer à diffuser des informations exactes et promouvoir les comportements responsables pour stopper la propagation du virus.

Le cardinal Rodriguez a déclaré "Je me réjouis de l'inspiration et de la motivation fournies par le thème de la Journée mondiale du sida 2007 'Appel au leadership. Stop sida. Tenez la promesse'. Ce leadership doit être pris à tous les niveaux de la société si l'on veut répondre à la pandémie mondiale du VIH avec justesse et dans sa totalité.

"Les dirigeants religieux peuvent assurer, doivent assurer et assurent effectivement un rôle de leadership, en contribuant à diffuser des informations exactes et en promouvant les comportements responsables pour prévenir la poursuite de la propagation du VIH, en prenant des initiatives visant la fourniture de services sanitaires, sociaux et pastoraux aux personnes touchées par la pandémie, ou qui y sont exposées, et en faisant des efforts tangibles pour éliminer la peur irrationnelle, la stigmatisation et la discrimination générées par cet enjeu de santé mondial.

"Je suis heureux de constater que 2007 marque la 20ème année depuis que Caritas a fait et tenu la promesse d'accompagner le leadership de l'Eglise catholique dans sa réponse globale face au sida".

Des progrès ont été faits ces dernières années pour traiter la crise mondiale du VIH, y compris l'accès élargi au traitement et le financement et la volonté politique accrus aux échelons national et international. Mais la pandémie continue à aller plus vite que la réponse.

L'ONUSIDA et l'Organisation mondiale de la santé (OMS) estiment que 33,2 millions de personnes dans le monde vivent avec le VIH. En 2007, 2,5 millions de personnes - essentiellement des pays les plus pauvres - ont été infectées par le virus tandis que 2,1 millions sont décédées de maladies opportunistes liées au sida.

Caritas estime que les dirigeants religieux peuvent également jouer un rôle important, en demandant davantage de leadership, d'action politique et de responsabilité de la part des gouvernements pour que l'accès universel d'ici à 2010 à la prévention, au traitement, à la prise en charge et à l'appui en matière de VIH devienne réalité.

Les organisations confessionnelles fournissent la majorité des soins aux personnes vivant avec le VIH, par exemple, jusqu'à 70% dans certains pays de l'Afrique subsaharienne. Au fil des ans, Caritas s'est attachée à élaborer la réponse de l'Eglise catholique, en apportant des contributions sous la forme de connaissances techniques pour la conception de programmes relatifs au VIH, formations, recherche, actions de plaidoyer et partage des informations sur les meilleures pratiques, et en intégrant cette réponse dans la communauté sanitaire internationale.

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

YOUNG MIGRANTS, THE THEME OF THE POPE'S MESSAGE

MESSAGE FOR WORLD DAY MIGRANTS AND REFUGEES PRESENTED



VATICAN CITY, NOV 28, 2007 (VIS) - Today in the Holy See Press Office, Cardinal Raffaele Martino, Archbishop Agostino Marchetto and Msgr. Novatus Rugambwa, respectively president, secretary, and under-secretary of the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, presented the Pope's Message for the 94th World Day of Migrants and Refugees, due to be held on January 13, 2008 on the theme of "Young Migrants."



Cardinal Martino affirmed that in our own time "the migration of young people is undergoing considerable growth. The young are forced to emigrate because of poverty and want, environmental decay, local and international conflicts, political and religious persecution, the demand for labor in industrialized countries, family reunion, etc."



"Young migrants," the cardinal said, "often find themselves alone, in a no-man's-land halfway between two cultures." This causes them "to live in a situation of great uncertainty that prevents them from conceiving a feasible project for their future and increases the factors that lead to marginalization, opening the doors to criminality, prostitution, alcohol, drugs and larceny."



"The crisis of values of our own day," the president of the pontifical council continued, "leads to the spiritual death of many young immigrants. Most of them are also relatively distant from religious concerns, and often recognize that they have received no ... education in this field."



"Specific pastoral action in support of young immigrants must be undertaken while bearing in mind the existential situation of the individual: ... the language, culture, religion, origin and personal history of each young immigrant."



Archbishop Marchetto focussed above all on aspects concerning the right to asylum and the situation of refugees. After recalling the fact that in some States unaccompanied minors are placed in detention, he turned to consider living conditions in refugee camps.



"Transitional camps," he said, "must go back to the role for which they were intended: places in which to reside temporarily. ... Currently, however, it has become a general practice, especially in countries of the South, to force people to live in overcrowded camps, very often in unspeakable conditions. Normally they are not even allowed to work, while their freedom of movement is limited, and thus they become totally dependent on the internal distribution of food within the camps. Moreover, they are often reduced to a life with a minimum of necessary goods and scant dignity. ... Hence there is little future for people who live in these places, which are often located in remote areas."



Finally, the archbishop praised the work of female religious who, "assisted by Catholic NGOs and by U.N. organizations, care for and accompany young people, especially girls who have suffered violence, rape or threats. There also exist," he added, "centers for underage mothers, offering them a second chance to complete their interrupted education or to learn a trade."



In his remarks, Msgr. Rugambwa considered the position of students who emigrate, highlighting how in his Message the Pope presents them "as a gift for man and for the Church. They bring with them the great resources of their youth, and must be open and receptive to new ideas and experiences while, at the same time, capable of remaining anchored in the truth."



"As the Holy Father says," indicated Msgr. Rugambwa, "these young people, must not only increase their openness to the dynamism of inculturation, but also seek opportunities for dialogue between cultures and religions, ... thus they will experience the universality of the Church."

OP/EMIGRANTS:REFUGEES/MARTINO:MARCHETTO VIS 071128 (590)



YOUNG MIGRANTS, THE THEME OF THE POPE'S MESSAGE



VATICAN CITY, NOV 28, 2007 (VIS) - "Young migrants" is the theme of the Message of the Holy Father Benedict XVI for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, which is to be celebrated on January 13, 2008. The Message has been published in Italian, French, English, German, Spanish and Portuguese. Large extracts of the English-language version are given below:



"The theme of the World Day of Migrants and Refugees invites us this year to reflect in particular on young migrants. ... The vast globalization process underway around the world brings a need for mobility, which also induces many young people to emigrate and live far from their families and their countries. The result is that many times the young people endowed with the best intellectual resources leave their countries of origin, while in the countries that receive the migrants, laws are in force that make their actual insertion difficult."



"For the young migrants, the problems of the so-called 'difficulty of dual belonging' seem to be felt in a particular way: on the one hand, they feel a strong need not to lose their culture of origin, while on the other, the understandable desire emerges in them to be inserted organically into the society that receives them, but without this implying a complete assimilation and the resulting loss of their ancestral traditions. Among the young people, there are also girls who fall victim more easily to exploitation, moral forms of blackmail, and even abuses of all kinds.



"Next, looking more closely at the sector of forced migrants, refugees and the victims of human trafficking, we unhappily find many children and adolescents too. On this subject it is impossible to remain silent before the distressing images of the great refugee camps present in different parts of the world. ... These children and adolescents have only had as their life experience the permanent, compulsory 'camps' where they are segregated, far from inhabited towns, with no possibility normally to attend school."



"The question is raised of how to respond to the expectations of the young migrants? What can be done to help them? Of course, it is necessary to aim first of all at support for the family and schools. But how complex the situations are, and how numerous the difficulties these young people encounter in their family and school contexts! In families, the traditional roles that existed in the countries of origin have broken down, and a clash is often seen between parents still tied to their culture and children quickly acculturated in the new social contexts.



"Likewise, the difficulty should not be underestimated which the young people find in getting inserted into the educational course of study in force in the country where they are hosted. Therefore, the scholastic system itself should take their conditions into consideration and provide specific formative paths of integration for the immigrant boys and girls that are suited to their needs. The commitment will also be important to create a climate of mutual respect and dialogue among all the students in the classrooms based on the universal principles and values that are common to all cultures."



"The Church looks with very particular attention at the world of migrants and asks those who have received a Christian formation in their countries of origin to make this heritage of faith and evangelical values bear fruit in order to offer a consistent witness in the different life contexts."



"Among the migrants ... there is one category to consider in a special way: the students from other countries who because of their studies, are far from home. ... They are young people who need a specific pastoral care because they are not just students, like all the rest, but also temporary migrants. They often feel alone under the pressure of their studies and sometimes they are also constricted by economic difficulties."



"It is necessary to help them find a way to open up to the dynamism of inter-culturality and be enriched in their contact with other students of different cultures and religions. For young Christians, this study and formation experience can be a useful area for the maturation of their faith, a stimulus to be open to the universalism that is a constitutive element of the Catholic Church.



"Dear young migrants, prepare yourselves to build together your young peers a more just and fraternal society by fulfilling your duties scrupulously and seriously towards your families and the State. Be respectful of the laws and never let yourselves be carried away by hatred and violence. Try instead to be protagonists as of now of a world where understanding and solidarity, justice and peace will reign."



"The Church needs you too and is counting on your contribution. You can play a very providential role in the current context of evangelization. Coming from different cultures, but all united by belonging to the one Church of Christ, you can show that the Gospel is alive and suited to every situation; it is an old and ever new message. It is a word of hope and salvation for the people of all races and cultures, of all ages and eras."

MESS/YOUNG MIGRANTS/... VIS 071128 (870)

Friday, November 23, 2007

AIDS Caregivers: Despite Lower Numbers, Action Needed

AIDS Caregivers: Despite Lower Numbers, Action Needed
Groups Say Statistics a Sign of Hope -- and a Challenge

ROME, NOV. 23, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Although statistics revised this week by the United Nations indicate there are fewer people living with HIV/AIDS than previously thought, care agencies say the numbers call for renewed action, not complacency.


Figures released by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization have lowered the estimated of the number of people living with HIV to 33.2 million, down from 39 million. These numbers were welcomed by Church workers who respond to HIV/AIDS around the world as a sign of hope and a challenge to keep promises.

The reduced figures are primarily due to improved data-gathering methodology and better information from many countries, particularly India. There are, however, some indications that better access to treatment and more intensive efforts at prevention have stabilized the spread of the disease in some countries.

"We welcome any indication that fewer people are living with HIV, whether it is through more accurate statistics or because a strong response in some areas is making a positive impact," said Linda Hartke, coordinator of the Ecumenical Advocacy Alliance.

"But in no way can we relax our efforts. HIV remains a devastating disease not just for individuals, but for families, communities and nations," she added.

Monsignor Robert Vitillo, special adviser on HIV and AIDS at Caritas Internationalis, pointed out that the impact of AIDS far exceeds the statistics.

"The direct work of our Caritas member organizations and other Catholic organizations in care, counseling and support have always indicated that the impact of AIDS is far greater than the official figures have ever shown," he explained.

"The response to AIDS is not just about treating a disease," Monsignor Vitillo continued, "but treating all the factors in our society that continue to fuel the spread of the disease and inhibit our response, such as stigma and discrimination, violence and injustice against women, poverty, isolation, abuse. We see this in the faces all around us, and these numbers cannot be quantified."

Caritas Leader Sees a Threat in Latin America

Caritas Leader Sees a Threat in Latin America
Honduran Cardinal Sounds Warning About Underdevelopment

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 23, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Underdevelopment plaguing Latin America provokes tensions conspiring against peace, said the president of Caritas Internationalis.

Cardinal Oscar Rodríguez Maradiaga affirmed this Wednesday, the second day of work for the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, which focused on consideration of Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio."

The archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, said, "The objective of development is not just elevating all people to the level of the rich countries, but rather basing a more dignified life in the work of solidarity, a life in which the dignity and creativity of each person can effectively increase, as well as his capacity of responding to his own vocation, and therefore, to God's call."

The cardinal added, "The integral development of the human person is favored by the productivity and efficacy of work," although a business should not be considered only "a society of capital" but "a society of persons."

Given this, he explained, the Church's social doctrine emphasizes the concept of social responsibility of a business, and places emphasis on the priority of the human person and the common good.

The archbishop of Tegucigalpa said that "just as there exists a collective responsibility to avoid war, there should also exist a collective responsibility to promote development."

Echoing a theme of Paul VI, the cardinal said: "If development is a new name of peace, Latin American underdevelopment, with particular characteristics in each country, is a situation of injustice that promotes tensions conspiring against peace."

"In the work of evangelization," he concluded, "the practice of charity and the fight for justice should be considered a permanent model for the Church."


Caritas Feeding Hungry in Bangladesh

Caritas Feeding Hungry in Bangladesh

Disaster-Preparedness Program Helped Quick Response

DHAKA, Bangladesh, NOV. 22, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The international aid organization Caritas already distributed food to 120,000 people in the aftermath of Cyclone Sidr.

The cyclone, which hit a week ago, claimed the lives of at least 3,100 people. Rescuers fear that number could climb as high as 10,000, once more remote areas are reached. At least 1.2 million were left homeless.

The executive director of Caritas Bangladesh, Benedict Alo D’Rozario said, “During my visits to the affected areas of Bagerhat and Patuakhali districts, I have seen that the roofs of about 90% of the houses have been blown away. […] [t]he roofs of many schools have been blown away and children do not know where their books are.

“Roads are yet to be cleared for vehicles and transport connections are not fully restored yet. No ferry is available to cross the river at Kalapara. People are still under open sky and searching for their valuables from the debris. Many of them are desperately looking for or waiting for their loved ones to return as thousands of them are still missing."

Caritas Bangladesh has long-term development and disaster preparedness programs in the worst-hit areas, which helped with the speed of the response.

After completing the first round of aid, Caritas will repeat food assistance to the same families.

Over $3.2 billion worth of crops have been destroyed resulting in the loss of food and income for millions of people. Caritas will be looking at the medium- to long-term impact after the initial phase of the relief effort has ended.

The Bangladesh government promised today to feed the more than 2 million people left destitute after the storm destroyed crops, saying it had promises of some $390 million in international aid.

Benedict XVI to Sign 2nd Encyclical

Benedict XVI to Sign 2nd Encyclical

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 22, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI will sign his second encyclical, dedicated to the theme of hope, this Nov. 30, confirmed his secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone.

The cardinal confirmed the Pope's plan today during the 4th world congress of the organizations dedicated to justice and peace, under way in Rome and focusing on the 40th anniversary of Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio."

Nov. 30 is the feast day of St. Andrew the Apostle. Normally, encyclicals and other papal documents are not published on the same day they are signed; rather, the texts are released to the public some time after the official signing date.


The Holy Father's second encyclical is inspired by St. Paul's letter to the Romans. His first encyclical, about charity, titled "Deus Caritas Est," was released in 2006 .


Cardinal Bertone said over the summer that the Pope is also preparing an encyclical about social themes.

Thursday, November 22, 2007

ENSURE THAT NO ONE WILL EVER BE HUNGRY AGAIN

ENSURE THAT NO ONE WILL EVER BE HUNGRY AGAIN

VATICAN CITY, NOV 22, 2007 (VIS) - At midday today, the Pope received participants in the 34th general conference of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), which has its headquarters in Rome.

In his English-language talk to the delegates, the Pope indicated that "all forms of discrimination, and particularly those that thwart agricultural development, must be rejected since they constitute a violation of the basic right of every person to be 'free from hunger.' These convictions are in fact demanded by the very nature of your work on behalf of the common good of humanity."

Benedict XVI highlighted the paradox of "the relentless spread of poverty in a world that is also experiencing unprecedented prosperity, not only in the economic sphere but also in the rapidly developing fields of science and technology."

Such obstacles as "armed conflicts, outbreaks of disease, adverse atmospheric and environmental conditions and the massive forced displacement of peoples," said the Pope, "should serve as a motivation to redouble our efforts to provide each person with his or her daily bread.

"For her part, the Church is convinced that the quest for more effective technical solutions in an ever-changing and expanding world calls for far-sighted programs embodying enduring values grounded in the inalienable dignity and rights of the human person," he added.

"The united effort of the international community to eliminate malnutrition and promote genuine development necessarily calls for clear structures of management and supervision, and a realistic assessment of the resources needed to address a wide range of different situations. It requires the contribution of every member of society - individuals, volunteer organizations, businesses, and local and national governments - always with due regard for those ethical and moral principles which are the common patrimony of all people and the foundation of all social life."

Benedict XVI continued his talk by saying that "today more than ever, the human family needs to find the tools and strategies capable of overcoming the conflicts caused by social differences, ethnic rivalries, and the gross disparity in levels of economic development."

"Religion, as a potent spiritual force for healing the wounds of conflict and division, has its own distinctive contribution to make in this regard, especially through the work of forming minds and hearts in accordance with a vision of the human person."

"Technical progress, important as it is, is not everything," the Pope told the FAO delegates. "Progress must be placed within the wider context of the integral good of the human person. It must constantly draw nourishment from the common patrimony of values which can inspire concrete initiatives aimed at a more equitable distribution of spiritual and material goods."

"This principle," he explained, "has a special application to the world of agriculture, in which the work of those who are often considered the 'lowliest' members of society should be duly acknowledged and esteemed."

In conclusion the Holy Father recalled how "FAO's outstanding activity on behalf of development and food security clearly points to the correlation between the spread of poverty and the denial of basic human rights, beginning with the fundamental right to adequate nutrition. Peace, prosperity, and respect for human rights are inseparably linked. The time has come to ensure, for the sake of peace, that no man, woman and child will ever be hungry again!"

AC/HUNGER/FAO VIS 071122 (570)

Putting Social Doctrine in the Limelight

ZE07112109 - 2007-11-21
Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-21072?l=english

Putting Social Doctrine in the Limelight

Justice and Peace Council Consider Key Task


VATICAN CITY, NOV. 21, 2007 (Zenit.org).- The Church's social doctrine is a treasure that needs to be better known and understood, said the secretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace.

In his Tuesday report to open the dicastery's plenary assembly, Monsignor Giampaolo Crepaldi explained that the promotion of Christian social doctrine is one of the group's key tasks.

“Within this perspective,” explained the secretary of the Pontifical Council, “all the activities have been planned as instruments to give a new momentum to social doctrine, in order to detect ways of relaunching it in the various social, economic and political fields."

Monsignor Crepaldi considered the reception of the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, presented for the first time publicly in October 2004, and now already officially released in countries all over the world. The compendium continues to be translated into more and more languages, he said.

"We should try to make a provisional review of the reception of the compendium three years since its publication,” affirmed Monsignor Crepaldi. "I dare say, that it has been welcomed with greater enthusiasm outside Europe -- in Asia, Africa, Latin America -- than on the European continent.”

According to the secretary of the Vatican dicastery, “There is still much to do so the compendium will be used systematically as a point of reference for a social pastoral plan adapted to these times, conforming to the teachings of the Church, and trusting that the light of the Gospel is still the principal motor of human development.”

Among the many places in which the compendium was presented, Monsignor Crepaldi emphasized Russia and Cuba.

“In Russia, in St. Petersburg and Moscow, the presentation of the compendium helped contact with the Orthodox Church,” the monsignor said. “In Cuba, because of the presence of a communist regime in that country, and on account of the vivacity of a Catholic Church very committed on the part of the laity, the presentation of the compendium was a very opportune initiative.”

For Monsignor Crepaldi, the compendium “can do much good because it helps to clarify, helps one understand and dialogue in search of the truth.”

Friday, November 16, 2007

COUNCIL PLENARY, WORLD CONGRESS ON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT

COUNCIL PLENARY, WORLD CONGRESS ON HUMAN DEVELOPMENT



VATICAN CITY, NOV 16, 2007 (VIS) - "Problems and prospects of human development today, 40 years after 'Populorum progressio'," is the subject due to be examined at the forthcoming plenary session of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, to be held on November 20 and 21, and at the second world congress of ecclesial organizations active in that sector, to be held in Rome from November 22 to 24.



According to a communique from the pontifical council, its members and consultors "will reflect on the current validity of the historical papal document, with particular emphasis on the moral aspects of development, on new forms of poverty and globalization, on conflicts and disarmament, and on safeguarding and protecting human rights."



Among those due to participate in the plenary assembly alongside Cardinal Renato Martino and Bishop Giampaolo Crepaldi, respectively president and secretary of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, are Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga S.D.B., archbishop of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, and Archbishop Laurent Monsengwo Pasinya of Kisangani, Democratic Republic of the Congo, president of Pax Christi.



More than 300 delegates from more than 80 countries on five continents are expected to participate in the second world congress of ecclesial organizations active in the sector of justice and peace. The specific theme of their meeting will be: "The 40th anniversary of 'Populorum progressio:' the development of all of man, the development of all mankind."



Participants, the communique reads, "will study the new situations that have come into being in the world since the publication of the historic document, and the current challenges of development in the light of the Church's social doctrine, in particular the questions of human ecology, pluralism and inter-cultural dialogue, and new forms of government in the context of globalization. Particular attention will also be given to the Church's pastoral commitment to integral and solidary development in the world today."

CON-IP/HUMAN DEVELOPMENT/ MARTINO VIS 071116 (320)

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Papal Message on the Common Good

Papal Message on the Common Good
"Only Together Is It Possible to Attain It and Safeguard Its Effectiveness"

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 14, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a Vatican translation of the letter Benedict XVI sent on the occasion of the Sept. 23-28 Italian Catholic Social Week.

* * *

LETTER OF HIS HOLINESS BENEDICT XVI TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE ITALIAN BISHOPS' CONFERENCE ON THE OCCASION OF THE CENTENARY OF THE ITALIAN CATHOLIC SOCIAL WEEK

To my Venerable Brother Archbishop Angelo Bagnasco President of the Italian Bishops' Conference

This year is the centenary of the first Italian Catholic Social Week, which was held in Pistoia from 23 to 28 September 1907 particularly at the initiative of Prof. Giuseppe Toniolo. He was a splendid lay Catholic, scientist and social apostle, protagonist of the Catholic Movement at the end of the 19th century and the dawn of the 20th. On this important jubilee, I willingly send my cordial greeting to you, Venerable Brother, to Bishop Arrigo Miglio of Ivrea, President of the Scientific Committee and organizer of the Social Weeks, to the collaborators and to all the participants in the 45th Week that will be held in Pistoia and Pisa from the 18th to the 21st of this month. Although the theme chosen -- "The common good today: a commitment that comes from afar" -- has already been treated during previous Weeks, it has kept its timeliness intact. Indeed, it is appropriate that it be studied and explained precisely now in order to avoid a generic and at times improper use of the term "common good".

The Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, with reference to the teaching of the Second Vatican Ecumenical Council (cf. "Gaudium et Spes," n. 26), specifies that "the common good does not consist in the simple sum of the particular goods of each subject of a social entity. Belonging to everyone and to each person, it is and remains "common' because it is indivisible and because only together is it possible to attain it, increase it and safeguard its effectiveness, with regard also to the future" (n. 164). Francisco Suárez, a theologian, had already earlier identified a "bonum commune omnium nationum," which means: "a common good of the human race". Therefore, in the past and especially today in the epoch of globalization, the common good has been and should be considered and promoted also in the context of international relations. It clearly appears that precisely for the social foundation of human existence, the good of each person is naturally connected with the good of all humanity. The beloved Servant of God John Paul II noted in this regard in the Encyclical "Sollicitudo Rei Socialis" that: "It is above all a question of interdependence, sensed as a system determining relationships in the contemporary world, in its economic, cultural, political and religious elements, and accepted as a moral category" (n. 38). And he added: "When interdependence becomes recognized in this way, the correlative response as a moral and social attitude, as a "virtue', is solidarity. "This then is not a feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so many people, both near and far. "On the contrary, it is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good; that is to say, to the good of all and of each individual, because we are all really responsible for all" (ibid.).

In the Encyclical "Deus Caritas Est," I wanted to recall that "the formation of just structures is not directly the duty of the Church, but belongs to the world of politics, the sphere of the autonomous use of reason" (n. 29). I then noted that: "The Church has an indirect duty here, in that she is called to contribute to the purification of reason and to the reawakening of those moral forces without which just structures are neither established nor prove effective in the long run" (ibid.). What better occasion than this to reaffirm that working for a just order in society is a direct task proper to the lay faithful? As citizens of the State, it is their duty to take part in public life in the first person and, with respect for the legitimate autonomies, to cooperate in forming social life correctly, together with all other citizens, in accordance with the competencies of each one and under his or her own autonomous responsibility. In my Intervention at the National Ecclesial Convention of Verona last year, I reaffirmed that the immediate duty to act in the political sphere to build a just order in Italian society is not the Church's task as such, but rather, that of the lay faithful. They must dedicate themselves with generosity and courage to this duty of great importance, illuminated by faith and by the Church's Magisterium and animated by the charity of Christ ("Address at the Fourth Italian National Ecclesial Convention," 19 October 2006; L'Osservatore Romano English edition, 25 October, p. 8). For this reason the Social Weeks for Italian Catholics were wisely instituted, and this providential initiative will also be able to make a crucial contribution to the formation and animation of Christianly inspired citizens in the future.

The daily news demonstrates that contemporary society is facing many ethical and social emergencies that could undermine its stability and seriously jeopardize its future. Particularly relevant is the current anthropological question which embraces respect for human life and the attention to be paid to the needs of the family founded on the marriage of a man and a woman. As has been affirmed several times, it is not a matter of solely "Catholic" values and principles but of defending and protecting common human values, such as justice, peace and the safeguarding of creation. What can then be said of the problems concerning work in relation to the family and young people? When lack of steady work does not permit young people to have a family of their own, society's authentic and full development is seriously jeopardized. Here I repeat the invitation I addressed to Italian Catholics at the Ecclesial Convention in Verona, to be ready to welcome the great opportunity that these challenges offer and not to react with a defeatist withdrawal into themselves, but on the contrary, with a renewed dynamism, to trustingly open themselves to new relationships and not waste any energy that could contribute to Italy's cultural and moral growth.

Lastly, I cannot fail to mention a specific context that prompts Catholics also in Italy to question themselves: it is the context of the relationship between religion and politics. The substantial novelty brought by Jesus is that he opened the way to a more human and freer world, with full respect for the distinction and autonomy that exists between what belongs to Caesar and what belongs to God (cf. Mt 22: 21). If, therefore, on the one hand, the Church recognizes that she is not and does not intend to be a political agent, on the other, she cannot avoid concerning herself with the good of the whole civil community in which she lives and works and to which she makes her own special contribution, shaping in the political and entrepreneurial classes a genuine spirit of truth and honesty geared to seeking the common good rather than personal advantage.

These are the particularly timely topics to which the upcoming Italian Catholic Social Week will give its attention. I assure my special remembrance in prayer to those who will be taking part in it and as I wish them fertile and fruitful work for the good of the Church and the entire Italian People, I warmly impart to all a special Apostolic Blessing.

From the Vatican, 12 October 2007

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Cardinal Poupard on "Populorum Progressio"

Cardinal Poupard on "Populorum Progressio"
"Lack of Education Is As Serious As Lack of Food"

ROME, NOV. 13, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is the text of a speech delivered by Cardinal Paul Poupard, retired president of the Pontifical Councils of Culture and Interreligious Dialogue, titled "'Populorum Progressio': Education for Development."

The speech was given Oct. 29 at the Patristic Augustinianum Institute during an event organized by the Society of Jesus' Commission for Social Communications, which presented the "Give 1, Get 1" initiative of the One Laptop per Child Project.

* * *

1. At the invitation of the Secretary of the Commission for Social Communications of the Society of Jesus, Father Thomas Rochford, I am pleased to be here to speak about the encyclical letter "Populorum Progressio," whose fortieth anniversary we are celebrating this year. Previously Father Rochford has approached me regarding the Nexus Mundi Foundation, which I know some of you are familiar with. Today, instead, we are here to hear about another project: Nicholas Negroponte's project One Child One Laptop. To all of you my cordial salutations.

Paul VI's encyclical on the development of peoples contained two great affirmations, one in the introduction, "the social question ties all men together", and the other in the conclusion "Development is the New Name for Peace". Between them Papa Montini articulated a solemn call to "urge all men to pool their ideas and their activities for man's complete development and the development of all mankind" (§ 5). Our reflection on this encyclical -- taken largely from my recent publication "Populorum progressio tra ricordi e speranze" -- aims to continue its message within today's conference, resurrecting the spirit of hope and confidence for the integral development of each individual in an atmosphere of fraternal concern, the central thrust of the encyclical.

2. I was a young collaborator in the Secretariat of State of Pope Paul VI when he himself asked me to present his encyclical letter "Populorum Progressio" at the Press Room of the Holy See. It was my first press conference, and so you can imagine what an emotional occasion it was for me! And not only for me, there was great expectation among the bishops, the clergy, religious men and women, and lay people, and also further afield among men and women of goodwill who saw this occasion as the next great moment in the pastoral care of the Catholic Church for the contemporary world. Indeed, some journalists measured the arc of time in terms of the Second Vatican Council document "Gaudium et Spes," John XXIII's "Pacem in Terris" and now this new encyclical of Paul VI, whose publication date was adjusted to Tuesday of Easter Week, due to the great amount of interest. In fact, the document did have other precursors in Leo XIII's encyclical "Rerum Novarum," Pius XI's encyclical "Quadragesimo Anno," Pius XII's radio messages to the world, and John XXIII's "Mater et Magistra." And let us not forget too that since then we have had "Laborem Exercens," and "Sollicitudo Rei Socialis." But by far the most dramatic document, for its timing, insight, and sense of occasion, was Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio."

3. When the encyclical was conceived, we were living through times of great ferment. The third world had made its voice heard through their bishops at the Second Vatican Council, right at the heart of the Church, which had opened itself to the world, wishing to be as leaven in the bread, to nourish and sustain the world in transformation, a world which was increasingly multicultural and multiracial, a world inebriated by its technological progress and facing the nuclear threat, a world in which east and west, north and south were in ever closer contact. A world that had become socialised.

The 1960s would see Kennedy and Khrushcev, Chairman Mao and President Johnson, and then that cultural, social and political movement in the Springtime of Prague and the student revolutions across the world, notably in California, Paris and Turin. A cultural revolution which expelled age-old institutions and educational models, opening the door to new challenges and opportunities; an ambience in which customs, mindsets, and ways of life would change, the very fabric of culture transformed as people sought a society less authoritarian and free. Religious, political and civil authority changed its nature, and the bizarre slogan became the new gospel "interdit d'interdire", "no banning allowed". While the intentions of the student movement were to replace the old institutions with a more humane society, what actually happened was the creation of a void which would be filled by economic promoters eager to make material gain; publicity and marketing became the new truth, particularly with the rise of television, and man became closed in on himself, or as my friend the poet Pierre Emmanuel put it, we became "ontologically distracted." It was a world living for the here and now. The Second World War had been forgotten, economic prosperity had brought great distractions; Europeans had forgotten the meaning of hunger, fear, and, what is worse, had closed their eyes, minds and hearts to the downtrodden, the poor and the weak.

4. It was with courage that Paul VI spoke to men and women ensnared in this endless series of distractions -- "divertissements" as Pascal put it. The Pope spoke not out of opportunity, but out of necessity. The populations of the world had become in one way nearer, but at the same time less familiar with each other. He sought to recover the meaning and duty of fraternity. He appealed not just for economic progress, but for a fraternal progress. And he did so with an urgency, for it was no longer the case of just the poor man, Lazarus holding out his hand not to receive any crumbs. Now it is was not just Lazarus, but entire multitudes of peoples who were hungry, illiterate, and on the verge of war. And the response needed was to be built not on the basis of an ideal, but in the concrete reality of what it means to be truly human, underlining what it means to recognise the poor as brothers, to be solidaritous, to seek development for the poor for the sake of all.

5. Historians will have an easy task in examining the preparations of the encyclical, for there are volumes of notes and dossiers in the Vatican archives[1]. But the spirit of love that drove the preparations, an essential characteristic of Pope Paul VI himself, is already clear for all to see. When I presented the document I had this to say...

"It is a letter, not a tract, nor a course, nor an erudite article; but a letter, and so it is inspired by Christian love. So it aims to resolve and energise, bringing the attention of the Church and the world's public opinion to the issues discussed therein, to offer human and scientific solutions, able to define the thought of the Church in this field and to help the world think along these lines of thought."

As with our current Pontiff, Benedict, love was a theme of the Pope from Brescia. In his first message to the human family, titled "Qui fausto Die", no sooner had he announced the continuation of the Council than he signalled another principal aim of his PontifIcate, and I quote,

"The unequivocal order of love of neighbour, the proof of the love of God, demands from all men a more equitable solution of the social problems; it demands provisions and cures for developing countries, where often the standard of life is not worthy of the human person; it imposes a global study to improve the conditions of life. This new era, which has been opened to humanity through the conquests of space, will be blessed by the Lord if men learn how to recognise each other as brothers not competitors, to build a world order in holy reverence of God, respecting his Law, in the sweet light of charity and mutual collaboration."

From its beginning to its end, "Populorum Progressio" is aimed at action inspired by love. There is also an adoption of the threefold method dear to Catholic Action: "voir -- juger -- agir." Having noticed the "immediate misery" (n.9), the "growing unbalance" (n.8), "the scandal of clamourous inequality" (n.9), Paul VI offered a new standard for growth: the transcendent humanism which the person achieves by being inserted into Christ is the ultimate goal of development, and the "integral development of the individual necessarily entails a joint effort for the development of the human race as a whole" (n. 43). Hence the call for action, to mutual solidarity, to work for social justice, a promotion of universal charity, dialogue between nations, equity in trade relations, the creation of a fund for relief of impoverished peoples, and a renewed sense of hope for the future.

6. In "Sollicitudo Rei Socialis," John Paul II underlined some nodes of our encyclical, especially its theme, development, which needs to be seen not only as a term of social and economic sciences, but primarily in its ethical, cultural and spiritual dimensions; and he noted how it opened the "social question" to a wider scale, not just geographically or globally, but in its human dimension as a moral question, with the duty of solidarity -- dutiful today as it was 40 years ago tying development to universal interdependence. This meant there was a reappraisal of the meaning of development, which is now seen in its fraternal and universal dimension for the whole of each and every person; it cannot be built on National or individual egoisms or restricted to mere material gain. Economic issues can no longer be considered without the full dimension of the human person, for the economy exists for man, through man and in man. No one, no people, no culture, no aspect of the human person can be excluded from it. In speaking with such realism and offering a message of hope founded on Revelation -- Paul VI's was a call for a programme of economic stability, moral dignity, education, and universal collaboration between nations, reminding the men and women of the world of the serious and urgent duty of promoting an international social justice.

7. While Paul VI's words were prophetic, it is sad to see how little the situation changed. Despite industrial and economic growth, humanity still suffers. War, poverty, both material and spiritual, and misery remain. Yet Paul VI's views on development as the pathway to peace, have become recognised as a valid and fundamental therapy. His is a form of development worthy of the name, bringing it to each and every person, and in every aspect of their humanity.

Within this new vision of development -- and here I conclude for today's conference -- Pope Paul VI gave priority of place to education. Let us hear his words as I quote from number 35:

"We can even say that economic growth is dependent on social progress, the goal to which it aspires; and that basic education is the first objective for any nation seeking to develop itself. Lack of education is as serious as lack of food; the illiterate is a starved spirit. When someone learns how to read and write, he is equipped to do a job and to shoulder a profession, to develop self confidence and realize that he can progress along with others" ("Populorum Progressio," 35).

And again at number 76, under the magisterial title Development is the new name for peace he warns of the urgency of this need:

"Extreme disparity between nations in economic, social and educational levels provokes jealousy and discord, often putting peace in jeopardy." ("Populorum Progressio," 76).

To that prophetic voice of Paul VI we still have a duty to listen and to respond. Let us do so with urgency and with care, lest we be accused with the words I heard drastically at the time of the publication of "Populorum Progressio" from the mouth of someone from the developing world. I remember his piercing accusation only too well. He said, "You have kept Christ for yourself, and left us only with the cross".

Thank you for your time.

* * *

[1] The document itself mentions the Holy Father's collaborators in reading the signs of the times and, with the pastoral gaze of a shepherd, expert in humanity thanks to the perspective of Revelation, setting out priorities for a strategic response. They were Jacques Maritain, Colin Clark, Von N ell-Breuning, Mons Larrain, Fr De Lubac, and Maurice Zundel. I will never forget Fr Lebret Indeed, Earlier this month I was able to give a talk in the distinctive Abbaye Saint Jacut de la Mer which was the home of Pere Lebret It was his work that helped to shape the future encyclical, particularly his 1963 dossier titled: "Sur Ie developpement economique, social, moral- Materiel d'etude pour une encyclique sur les principes moraux du developpement humain." For justice's sake I might also mention Francois Perroux, a regular visitor to Papa Montini. His thought and work notably influenced the encyclical. Indeed he was so upset at not being mentioned in the footnotes that he came to remonstrate with me: a fact which caused some consternation up in the Third Loggia due to his deafness and tendency to speak very, very loudly.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Solidarity a Global Challenge, Says Pope

ZE07111109 - 2007-11-11
Permalink: http://www.zenit.org/article-20979?l=english
Solidarity a Global Challenge, Says Pope

Urges Sharing of Resources, Including Technology

VATICAN CITY, NOV. 11, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI says he is convinced that solidarity is the great challenge of the globalized world.

"[O]nly through a common commitment to sharing [is it] possible to respond to the great challenge of our time: that of building up a world of peace and justice in which every man can live with dignity," the Pope said today before leading the praying of the midday Angelus in St. Peter's Square.

He added, "This can happen if a global model of authentic solidarity prevails, one that is able to assure all the inhabitants of the planet food, water, necessary medicines, and also work and energy resources, as well as cultural goods and scientific and technological knowledge."

The Holy Father meditated on the example left by the saint that the Church celebrates today, Martin of Tours (316-397), a soldier, bishop, and founder of the oldest known monastery in Europe.

The Pope recalled that St. Martin has passed into history above all for an act of fraternal charity, which has inspired numerous artists, such as El Greco.

"While still a young soldier, he met a poor man along the road who was frozen and trembling from the cold," the Pontiff explained. "Martin took his own cloak and cutting it with his sword, gave half of it to the man. That night Jesus appeared to Martin in a dream, smiling and wrapped in the cloak."

Benedict XVI exhorted all Christians "to be, like St. Martin, generous witnesses of the Gospel of charity and tireless builders of solidary sharing."

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

FYI: Political Responsibility; New Initiative from Center of Concern

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A new Initiative from the Center of Concern

www.coc.org/election2008

As Christians approaching a crucially important set of national elections, we have a serious responsibility in faith to be authentic Citizen Disciples: involved in the political process, working to turn the country toward greater justice for all, guided in addressing the issues and candidates first of all by the values of Jesus and his vision of the human community in the Reign of God. We believe we can help.

During the important, formative few months ahead, the Catholic community has a great deal to offer to the national political debate:

· a centuries-long living tradition of social vision, principles and values,

  • deep engagement with each and all of the issues facing the American people,
  • strong national and international networks of organizations committed to working for justice for each and every person, and
  • a well-articulated faith vision that supports and invites social engagement with these issues.

To help Christians and Catholics take leadership in the national process of selecting new leadership and setting our national direction into the future, the Center of Concern will offer our analyses of the major issues to you, citizens and disciples, people of faith. We will also share educational tools to help you deepen your own analysis, make your own evaluation of the programs and candidates, and engage your local communities in those same efforts.

The first set of materials with which we are launching this project clarifies the notion of the common good as the context for all the major issues of the campaigns. The policy paper and educational materials argue that each of the issues – from immigration to jobs, from health care to global warming, from poverty to terrorism – is a new and more complicated problem than it was a few years ago precisely because of globalization.

“Merely national solutions to security, health, poverty, employment, migration, the ecology and life itself cannot provide more than short-term fixes,” writes James E. Hug, SJ, Project Coordinator and President of the Center of Concern.

All materials in the Center of Concern initiative will be posted at www.coc.org/election2008 and www.educationforjustice.org, and are available free of charge for individual or group use. Future postings in this Center initiative will be made on the 1st and 15th of each month. Topics will include immigration, international relations, jobs and outsourcing, poverty, Iraq and security, health care, and climate change. Other topics may be developed as the campaigns evolve.