VATICAN CITY, OCT 13, 1999 (VIS) - Made public this afternoon were the "in scriptis" (written, not spoken) reports of several of the synod fathers. Following are excerpts from three of those reports:
CARDINAL WILLIAM WAKEFIELD BAUM, MAJOR PENITENTIARY. "The need of the Sacrament of Penance in our lives as bishops: The Synod offers a welcome opportunity for a profound examination of our consciences, especially with regard to the exercise of our ministry. A few days ago, we read these words of St. Gregory the Great, addressed to his brother bishops: 'Pastors should be careful in deciding when to remain silent and be sure to say something useful when deciding to speak. Negligent pastors are often afraid to speak freely and say what needs to be said, for fear of losing favor with people. As Truth Himself says, they are certainly not guarding their flock with the care expected of a shepherd but are acting like hirelings, because hiding behind a wall of silence is like taking flight at the approach of the wolf. If a pastor is afraid to say what is right, what else can his silence mean but that he has taken flight?' ... Among the grave problems of today is widespread ignorance and confusion. Erroneous theology not only concerning the Church, the Sacraments and Moral doctrine but even on the fundamental mysteries of Faith: the Trinity, Incarnation, the Mediation of Christ Jesus are in varied ways called into question or relativized. ... Action on our part is demanded. We are, with the Successor of Peter, 'Magistri Fidei' and are called to proclaim courageously the truth about Christ and, when necessary, to correct errors even at the cost of pain to ourselves and to those whom we serve. It is often affirmed that there has been a loss of the sense of sin and a consequent decline in the reception of the Sacrament of Penance. At an earlier Synodal Assembly, this problem was confronted and propositions were submitted to the Holy Father. The post-synodal Apostolic exhortation 'Reconciliatio et Paenitentia' responded to these propositions."
BISHOP JOZSEF TEMPFLI OF ORADEA MARE OF THE LATIN RITE, VICE PRESIDENT (LATIN RITE) OF THE EPISCOPAL CONFERENCE OF ROMANIA. "I request that the Synod of Bishops for Europe give its approval to the following propositions: 1. The opinion of individuals, which is always open to argument, must never lead to the certain death of a human being. Even abortion recommended by doctors constitutes homicide and therefore cannot be justified. 2. Even the end of one's life is in the hands of God. Therefore, in the same way, even euthanasia must be considered homicide and as such rejected. 3. Emigration should be discouraged, as it leads to the break up of many families and the abandoning of children and elderly persons. 4. Church property confiscated by communist regimes must be returned in all nations, including Romania. Where this is not possible, the State must offer the Church some form of reparation. 5. The teaching of religion and ecclesial education must be guaranteed by the law from kindergarten to university and considered on the same level as state education. 6. The Church will collaborate with the State in a constructive way, but refuses any form of injustice imposed by the State. The relationship between State and Church must be characterized by mutual assistance, the equality of rights and duties."
ARCHBISHOP GIUSEPPE GERMANO BERNARDINI, O.F.M. CAP. OF IZMIR, TURKEY. "I have been living in Turkey for the past 42 years, a country where 99.9 percent of the population is Muslim, and I have been archbishop of Izmir, Asia Minor, for the past 16 years. The theme of my intervention is therefore obvious: the problem of Islam in Europe today and in the future. ... Above all, the aim of my speech is to make a humble request to the Holy Father. To be brief and clear, first I will mention three cases that, due to their provenance, I believe to be true. 1. During an official meeting on Islamic-Christian dialogue, an authoritative Muslim person, speaking to the Christians participating, at one point said very calmly and assuredly: 'Thanks to your democratic laws we will invade you; thanks to our religious laws we will dominate you'. This is to be believed because the 'domination' has already begun with the 'petrol-dollars', used not to create work in the poor North African or Middle Eastern countries, but to build mosques and cultural centers in Christian countries with Islamic immigration, including Rome, the center of Christianity. How can we ignore in all of this a clear program of expansion and re-conquest?"
Archbishop Bernardini recounted two similar episodes and then continued: "It would be naive to underestimate or, worse yet, smile on the three cases I have referred to; I feel that their dramatic teaching must be reflected upon. ... And now I would like to make a serious proposal to the Holy Father: to organize as soon as possible, if not a synod, at least a symposium for bishops and those who operate in the field of pastoral ministry to immigrants, especially Muslim immigrants, widening the scope to the Reformed and Orthodox Churches. ... I end my address with an exhortation, suggested to me by experience: do not ever allow Muslims to use a Catholic Church for their cult, because this would be, in their eyes, the certain proof of our apostasy."
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