IN BRIEF

BENEDICT XVI HAS SENT A MESSAGE to delegates and participants in the Third European Ecumenical assembly, called by the Council of European Episcopal Conferences and by the Conference of European Churches, which is being held in Sibiu, Romania, on the theme: "The light of Christ shines over all mankind. The hope for renewal and unity in Europe." In his Message, the Pope expresses the hope that the meeting will "create meeting spaces for unity within [a context of] legitimate diversity. In an atmosphere of mutual trust, and with the awareness that our shared roots are much deeper than our divisions, it will be possible to overcome a false sense of self-sufficiency and ... spiritually to experience the shared foundation of our faith."

THE POPE HAS SENT A LETTER TO FR. JOSEPH CHALMERS, prior general of the Order of Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel, for the occasion of their general chapter which is due to be celebrated in September on the theme: "'In obsequio Jesu Christi.' A prayerful and prophetic community in a changing world." In his Letter, the Pope comments how the theme "well highlights the particular manner in which the Carmelite Order seeks to respond to God's love, through a life infused with prayer, fraternity and the prophetic spirit."
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