VATICAN CITY, SEP 29, 2006 (VIS) - This morning, the Pope received the credentials from the new ambassador from the Republic of Albania to the Holy See, Rrok Logu.
In his speech, the Holy Father pointed out that the Albanian population's aspiration "to truth and freedom was never cancelled, not even by the long and weighty Communist dictatorship, just recently abolished. To grow in a climate of authentic freedom, an adequate ethnic-spiritual context is needed, founded upon a concept of man and of the world that mirrors nature and vocation".
As well as supporting Albania's integration into the European Union, Benedict XVI expressed the hope that it "could offer a particular contribution to the harmonious process towards the continent's unification".
The Pope referred to the past work of the Catholic Church in Albania "for the promotion of faith and spiritual values, as well as, the support in many situations of need". In this context he recalled the Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta, who during her lifetime "proclaimed to all that God is love and loves all men, especially the poor and the abandoned. (...) The Church wishes to testify this love with its educational and social work, open not only to the Catholics but open to all".
He continued: "a primary form of charity is political activity, lived as a service to the 'polis', to the 'public good', a service belonging to the lay Catholics, with respect for the legitimate autonomy of politics and collaborating with other citizens for the building of a prosperous, brotherly and solidal nation".
The Holy Father mentioned one of the other problems the country must face, emigration. "If on one hand this phenomenon must be fought, the conditions must be created for those who wish to return to their homeland".
As concerns the official relations between the Catholic Church and the State, Benedict XVI asserted his appreciation for the law approved "to enact the 2002 Accord between the Holy See and the Republic of Albania, joined to the hope for opportune acts to regulate the financial aspects, which are very important".
He concluded: "The Holy See, this way, wishes to contribute in the consolidation in Albania of a state of law and the necessary juridical framework towards the real exercise of the citizens' rights in the religious area. This will also promote the diverse religious confessions present in the Nation to co-inhabit, offering an example of mutual respect and collaboration up until now, to be conserved and promoted".
CD/CREDENTIALS/ALBANIA:LOGU VIS 20060929 (420)
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