TENTH GENERAL CONGREGATION

VATICAN CITY, OCT 7, 1999 (VIS) - In the presence of John Paul II and 162 synod fathers, Cardinal Paul Poupard, president delegate on duty for the Special Assembly for Europe, convened the tenth congregation at 5 p.m. today in the synod hall. Speeches on the synod theme continued until the meeting was adjourned at 7 p.m.

Each synod father makes public a one-page summary of his speech in the original language. Following are excerpts from several of the summaries published today:

FR. ALDO GIORDANO, SECRETARY GENERAL OF THE COUNCIL OF THE EUROPEAN EPISCOPAL CONFERENCES. "In the reason for Christ on the Cross we can find all the questions of man. I believe that this is the most breathtaking point in the encounter between Christian proclamation and our European culture. Out of love, Jesus took negativity upon Himself and thus the negative was redeemed. I am very moved by the fact that the Gospel of the Crucified and Risen God listens to and understands the questions of man, even the darkest ones and answers then from within. The age of the fear of culture has ended. ... To be the transparent and credible witness of Christ, the Church - the place where the Risen One is present - is called upon to courageously adopt the path of dialogue and reconciliation within herself, in the ecumenical process and in the encounter with other religions and cultures."

BISHOP JUAN MARIA URIARTE GOIRICELAYA OF ZAMORA, SPAIN. "Strengthening the basic processes of Christian initiation is vital for the active endurance of evangelizing groups in Europe. This task falls particularly to the parish and the diocese. It should not fall wholly or mainly upon other ecclesial institutions such as Catholic schools or the new movements. In this task, the parish must allow itself to be helped by these institutions, taking advantage of their rich experience in directing Christians, incorporating their greatest innovations and compensating for their most evident shortcomings. With this help, the diocese must draw up its own plans for diocesan or inter-diocesan initiation. In the same way, it must prepare its priests, religious and selected lay persons to assimilate the main axiological and educational aspects of this project. Step by step, it must implant this process, with quasi binding force, in the whole diocese. This process must begin during youth."

ARCHBISHOP PAUL JOSEF CORDES, PRESIDENT OF THE PONTIFICAL COUNCIL "COR UNUM". "Solicitude for our neighbors is not a one-way missionary path. Altruistic service brings one closer to God. ... Consequently, Caritas cannot limit itself to a type of immanent humanism. It must not be confused with sums of money, technical support and administration. The Gospel demands something more than a commitment to the minimum necessary for existence. The Word of God announces victory over sin, the root of all ills. Thus, Caritas will become a school of faith and a path for new evangelization. The Church's priests must take advantage of this opportunity."
MSGR. ANTON COSA, APOSTOLIC ADMINISTRATOR "AD NUTUM SANCTAE SEDIS" FOR THE MOLDAVIANS, MOLDAVIA. "In Moldavia, a small country in the former Soviet Union still struggling with great difficulty to assert its own identity, the Catholic community is a small minority (only 0.5 percent) - nonetheless it has a specific identity. I would like my witness to stand as witness for this small community that continued to believe in Christ even when, during the age of communism, the Catholic Church was sorely tried. Our priests and lay faithful were often put in prison. To be Catholic then meant to be the biggest enemy of the State; yet under these circumstances, our people preserved, intact, fundamental Christian values. ... We are convinced that, the greater the number of inspired, sincere faces we see looking towards us, the more clearly will we contemplate the face of Christ, who makes us strong and courageous in faith, in hope, in love. ... Because the Catholic Church is a minority in our country, our concern is to be ever stronger and firmer in faith. We are trying to have mature and well-formed lay people who can work for the common good of the country. ... Yet, the irreplaceable duty of lay people always remains to bring the Gospel into those circles of social, economic and political life, not normally reached by the clergy. In this important mission, they enjoy the support of the entire community."

BISHOP VINCENT NICHOLS, AUXILIARY OF WESTMINSTER, ENGLAND. "In Europe today people are in search of meaning and hope, even if, from day to day, they live 'as if there were no God'. Preaching about the 'four last things' can address some of the deepest questions and anxieties which are faced today: doubt and fear about death; puzzlement over judgement; fascination with heaven; dread of hell. ... The true meaning of death is a meeting with God which can be faced without fear. In that meeting, there is judgement. ... The judgement of God is a gift we are to receive. This understanding of judgement can guide everyday living: what is most important is our readiness to give, and to receive. Day by day, the key to true judgement is always mercy. Can the Church proclaim and practice this judgement, especially towards those whose lives are wounded and broken? Heaven fascinates people today. They search out opportunities to be with their loved ones in peace and happiness. This longing is fertile soil for the Gospel. Can we again affirm that we are made, ultimately, for happiness, and that this final happiness is indeed attainable? A true vision of heaven can also guide our way on earth in our commitment to justice. As the Holy Father said in his recent discourses: 'We should await the final event with serene hope as we build in our time that kingdom which, at the end, Christ will hand over to the Father.' We need to speak least of all about hell. We Europeans are experts in the systematic construction of hell on earth, in wars and concentration camps. Our fear of hell is real and profound. ... Can we also remember that forgotten Article of the Creed: 'He descended into Hell', and include in our preaching the truth that the self-emptying of God, in Christ's descent into hell, is the core of the Gospel of Hope?"

BISHOP EGON KAPELLARI OF GURK, AUSTRIA. "On October 1st, the Holy Father proclaimed co-patronesses of our continent three great saints belonging to different eras of European ecclesial history. This is a prophetic sign at the threshold of the third millennium. The contribution given by women to the prosperity of the Church and society is great and has earned explicit thanks from this Synod. Since Vatican Council II, many doors have been opened to greater responsibility for the women of our Church. The women present at this Synod, among them Chiara Lubich, have many roles of great responsibility in important areas of ecclesial life. They offer a contribution to this Synod, a contribution with great spiritual competence and solidarity. They support the local European Church in their desire not to seek individual ways, divergent from those of the universal Church, to resolve the question of women. They proceed on a common path, within the boundaries of Catholic identity, in common dialogue between men and women, priests and lay persons. However, everyone must understand clearly that the Church and European society cannot prosper without finding a deep and ample consensus among women. Without them one cannot overcome the demographic, cultural and spiritual crisis existing in many European countries. However, the Church and society must understand the essence and the work of women, and the difficulties that many of them face."

ARCHBISHOP CHRISTOPH SCHONBORN O.P., OF VIENNA, AUSTRIA. "The 'Europeanization' of the European Union can be achieved only if integration is supported by spiritual renewal, and Jesus Christ is the key to this. ... The Holy Father always speaks about the two lungs of Europe and of the Church: the Eastern and the Western Church. The tradition of the Eastern Church has been, I must personally acknowledge this, of great help in the serious crisis of the Western Church. Western Christians need a vital contribution from the theology of the Fathers of the Church, from the monasticism of the Eastern Church, from the solemnity and the beauty of the Divine Liturgy and the icons. How much of the ecclesial renewal is due to the Churches of the East! But also the Eastern Church needs the Western lung to be more incarnate in the visible structures of society and overcome the serious danger represented by the national Church, for whom the referral to Peter, the center of unity, is essential."

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LETTER FOR MISSIONARY CONGRESSES IN ARGENTINA

VATICAN CITY, OCT 8, 1999 (VIS) - Made public today was a letter from the Pope to Archbishop Estanislao Karlic of Parana, Argentina, who presided over the Sixth Latin American Missionary Congress and the First American Missionary Congress, held in that city from September 28 to October 3.

In the letter, dated August 15, Solemnity of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, the Holy Father writes that "the Church is well aware that the missionary dimension inherent in all Christian communities comes, above all, from faith in Christ, whose newness and richness many not be kept hidden or monopolized."

"The call to evangelize necessarily includes an invitation to the strengthening of faith and the conversion of heart, in harmony with the Great Jubilee which the whole Church is preparing to live with intensity."

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ELEVENTH GENERAL CONGREGATION

VATICAN CITY, OCT 8, 1999 (VIS) - Cardinal Franciszek Macharski, president delegate on duty, at 9 this morning called to order the eleventh congregation of the Synod for Europe, in the presence of Pope John Paul and 166 synod fathers. The meeting closed at 12:35 p.m.

Following are excerpts from the speech given in Latin by Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano:

"In No. 83 of 'Instrumentum Laboris' we are invited to reflect on our commitment to build the new Europe at the threshold of the third Christian millennium. This is the duty both of the bishops of the various nations of the continent and of the Bishop of Rome, following the path of what has already been done in these two thousand years of history to build a family of nations in Europe. ... Up to 1989 there were only 16 pontifical representations in Europe. In the past ten years Pope John Paul II has set up a further 16, of which six are in the territory of the former Soviet Union. By these means the Holy See tries to cooperate in promoting those ethical values which are fundamental for the life of all people, such as the sacred meaning of life, the dignity of each human person, the importance of the family, the duty of solidarity and the commitment for peace. ... Of course natural law is not a 'recipe' that solves all types of moral problems. However, it is wrong to abandon the medicine just because it does not offer definitive solutions for all types of diseases. As we well know, without natural law, social life has no absolute foundation and any aberration becomes possible. This happened with marxism, which denied the possibility of natural law, considering it as derived from bourgeois ideology, just as happened with absolute liberalism, which claimed for man the right of defining the meaning of his own life. It is my belief that we must never tire of repeating that the person, the family and society come before the politics of governments, and I think that on those grounds we can find many people of good will who will be willing to cooperate with us in once again kindling the light of natural law in the thoughts and actions of European governments. This task with those who hold the destiny of peoples in their hands must involve us all, rendering unto Caesar that which is Caesa
r's but then asking the Caesars of today to render unto God that which is His."

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OTHER PONTIFICAL ACTS

VATICAN CITY, OCT 8, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father gave his blessing to the election by the Synod of Bishops of the Antiochene Maronite Church of Fr. Raymond Eid, pastor of Jezzine and episcopal vicar for the region of Jezzine, Lebanon, as archbishop of Damascus of the Maronites (Catholics 8,000, priests 2, religious 2), Syria. The archbishop-elect was born in Maraat-el-Dahre, Lebanon, in 1930 and ordained a priest in 1957. He succeeds Archbishop Antoine Hamid Mourany, whose resignation from the pastoral care of the same archdiocese was accepted by the synod in accordance with canon 210 of the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches.

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, OCT 8, 1999 (VIS) - The Holy Father today received in separate audiences:

- Archbishop Eugenio Sbarbaro, apostolic nuncio in Suriname and in the Cooperative Republic of Guyana, apostolic pro-nuncio in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Dominica, Jamaica, Grenada, Santa Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago and apostolic delegate in the Antilles.
- The Reverend Protopresbyter Kyriakos Tsouros, fraternal delegate of the Greek Orthodox Church at the Second Special Assembly for Europe of the Synod of Bishops.

The following participants in the Synod for Europe were invited to lunch by the Pope:

- Cardinal Thomas Joseph Winning, archbishop of Glasgow, Scotland.
- Cardinal Edward Idris Cassidy, president of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
- Metropolitan Jeremias of France, of the Ecumenical Patriarchate.
- Archbishop Josif of the Romanian Patriarchate, archbishop of Western and Southern Europe, from Romania.
- Reverend Protopresbyter Kyriakos Tsouros of the Greek Orthodox Church, Greece.
- Bishop John Hind of the Anglican community, bishop of Gibraltar, diocesan in Europe, Gibraltar.
- Reverend Keith Clements of the World Baptist Alliance, secretary general of the European Episcopal Conferences, Switzerland.
- Reihard Frieling of the World Lutheran Federation, moderator of the Commission on Churches in Dialogue, Germany.
- Reverend Veikko Purmonen of the Finnish Orthodox Church, Finland. - Fr. Matthias Turk, official of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity.
- Fr. Aldo Giordano, secretary general of the Council of the European Episcopal Conferences, from Italy.
- Fr. Peter Hans Kolvenbach S.J., superior general of the Society of Jesus, from the Netherlands.

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PRESENTATION OF BOOK "PIUS XII AND THE SECOND WORLD WAR"

VATICAN CITY, OCT 8, 1999 (VIS) - Cardinal Pio Laghi, prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education, and Fr. Pierre Blet, S.J., today presented the book authored by Fr. Blet and entitled "Pius XII and the Second World War in the Vatican Archives."

Fr. Blet explained that his book was a compendium of the information which he and three other Jesuits had previously gathered from the Vatican Secret Archives and which they published between 1965 and 1981 in 12 volumes entitled "Actes et documents du Saint-Siege relatifs a la seconde guerre mondiale" (Acts and Documents of the Holy See Relative to the Second World War").

He illustrated the background of this 12-volume work. "It is well known," he remarked, "that several years after the death of Pius XII, a campaign, whose motivating forces are still far from being known, was unleashed against him. Paul VI, who had been one of Pius XII's closest collaborators, ... decided to publish the archive documents relative to the war."

These volumes, Fr. Blet stressed, are available to anyone who wishes to consult them. "However," he added, "noting that, after 15 years our volumes were unknown by most historians, I decided to write a synthesis of the contents in one single volume."

Fr. Blet, a professor of modern history at Rome's Jesuit-run Gregorian University, stated that, at this press conference, he would limit himself "to underlining three points concerning the behavior and activity of Pius XII during the world war: his efforts to salvage peace and limit war; his attitude with regards to national-socialist power; his action in favor of the victims of war."

He then proceeded to give a number of examples from the book relative to each of the three above-mentioned points, recounting meetings, telegrams, letters and other communications between Pope Pius XII and his nuncios and between the Pope and diplomats from Europe and the United States.

He dedicated most of his presentation to the third point - the Pope's action for the victims of war. "The most oft-repeated accusation against Pius XII was that of remaining silent in the face of racial persecutions against the Jews, that a public denunciation by the pontiff himself could have saved (them) from extermination, from that 'final solution' enacted by the Nazi regime starting in 1942."

Fr. Blet stressed in particular the countless times that Pius XII reiterated - in person or in writing - what he told the Italian ambassador on May 13, 1940: "(Italians) surely and totally know the horrible things which are happening in Poland. We must say fiery words against such things, and the only thing that makes Us hold back from doing so is knowing that, if We speak, We will worsen the conditions of these unfortunate people."

Another example, said Fr. Blet, would be from a speech Pius XII made on June 2, 1943, when he explained his alleged "reticence" to defend the Jews: "Every word from Us ... to competent authorities, and every public sign from Us, must be seriously pondered and measured by Us in the interest of those who are suffering, so as not to make, even unwittingly, their situation more serious and unbearable."

Fr. Blet closed by highlighting that the Pope's "public silence masked secret actions, through nunciatures and episcopacies, to seek to block deportations. ... Steps repeatedly taken with the governments of those nations who preserved a certain margin of autonomy - Romania, Slovakia, Croatia, Hungary - through the nuncios and diplomatic representatives of these nations, succeeded in saving thousands of Jews. ... It must be remembered that it was an Israeli historian who presented the number of 850,000 Jews who were saved."

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