Vatican City, 11 June 2015 (VIS) –
Today marked the celebration of the National Day of the Holy See at
the Expo 2015 in Milan. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, General
Commissioner of the Holy See for Expo Milan 2015, Archbishop Giovanni
Angelo Becciu, substitute for General Affairs of the Secretariat of
State, Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, president on the Italian Episcopal
Conference, and Cardinal Angelo Scola, Archbishop of Milan, all spoke
this morning. This afternoon the “Courtyard of the Gentiles” will
also intervene with a presentation on the theme of “The Faces of
the Earth”.
During the course of the celebrations
this morning, Archbishop Becciu's speech emphasized that the Holy See
considers the vast objective of ensuring an adequate level of
nutrition as a real necessity, a result of true sharing, the same
which is evidenced in the participation of so many countries in Expo
Milan 2015.
“A shared action,” the archbishop
stated, “whose priority is the reduction of the number of hungry
persons must include not only interventions during emergency
situations, but also projects in favor of agricultural development
and their funding proportionate to the different capacity of donors
and the needs of beneficiaries. Giving and receiving according to
justice requires a formation of conscience attentive to the needs of
others, of each one, including when the problem is related to the use
of technology, their transfer to the most vulnerable areas and the
ability to meet the needs of beneficiaries without limiting the
prerogatives, rights, and―not the
least―alimentary customs and cultures. Such a commitment demands
that governments, international institutions, and civil social
organizations involved in food safety work together, preserving
diversity without putting them at odds, and using dialogue as the
only concrete tool.”
“Religions and their traditions,”
he added, “know well that freedom from hunger also means freedom
from conflicts and prevention of war as the Catholic Church's litany
of saints recalls, in the prayer for liberation from disease, hunger,
and war: 'a peste, fame, et bello libera nos, Domine'.”
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