CONFERENCE: GLOBALIZATION AND CATHOLIC HIGHER EDUCATION

VATICAN CITY, NOV 28, 2002 (VIS) - Today in the Holy See Press Office the International Conference on the theme, "Globalization and Catholic Higher Education: hopes and challenges", was presented. The conference, organized by the Congregation for Catholic Education and the International Federation of Catholic Universities (IFCU), will take place from December 2 to 6 in the Vatican.

The following participated in the press conference: Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, Archbishop Giuseppe Pittau, S.J., Msgr. Angelo Vincenzo Zani, respectively prefect, secretary and undersecretary of the congregation, as well as Fr. Jan Peters, S.J., and Msgr. Guy-Real Thivierge, respectively president and secretary of the IFCU.

Cardinal Grocholewski recalled that there are 950 Catholic universities on five continents in which 3,800,000 people study, many of whom belong to other Christians denominations or other religions. "Catholic universities," he said, "have been built by the Holy See or also by diocesan bishops, episcopal conferences, religious institutes or other ecclesiastical or lay persons."

Rectors of Catholic universities from all over the world will participate in the conference, as well as heads of episcopal conferences committed to education from Kenya, Democratic Republic of Congo, Argentina, Australia, Germany, Holland and Hungry. In addition, heads of foundations that aid universities and members of different dicasteries will take part.

Archbishop Pittau explained that the theme of globalization chosen for this conference "is not strange to the Catholic environment and especially not to the university atmosphere."

"The university," he said, "must form responsible and virtuous citizens who with their example and word promote a globalization capable of respecting human beings in their entirety."

Referring to the conference's program, Msgr. Thivierge affirmed that on the first day, "different realities of globalization" will be presented "as they are lived in our societies." Furthermore, "the question of globalization and its relationship with Catholic education" will be discussed.

This relationship between globalization and Christian values in the framework of Catholic higher education will be more-closely examined on the second day of the conference. A video-conference is also scheduled in which some directors of UNESCO will speak from Paris as well as former ministers of education, and rectors from the Synod Hall in the Vatican. During the video-conference some of John Paul II's speeches which have to do with globalization will be projected. The third day will be dedicated to the problem of the propositions and activity which must be promoted in the Catholic university world.

Fr. Jan Peters, president of the IFCU, said that the federation "is as diverse as the world in which its members try to fulfill their mission. Among the 200 members we find great research universities in the United States, Europe and Japan, but also young, poor and vulnerable institutions all over Africa; we find both universities that play a major role in the development of modern science or the implementation of modern economy, and universities - in India, for example - that try to guarantee a future for the underprivileged and those who are victims of the process of globalization. This diversity in membership is a real richness for our federation and also its major challenge."

Fr. Peters stressed that "it belongs to the mission of a Catholic university to strive for excellence in its teaching and research, not in a closed atmosphere but in openness to colleagues in less favorable circumstances who can really make an important contribution to the awareness of the consequences of modern research."

"The countries of our world are more and more interwoven, and at the same time the gaps are broadening," he added. "Our universities find their place in and have to cope with these tendencies." He noted that "next week's conference will concentrate on the changing socio-economic, political and especially cultural context of our universities. These developments - in which our universities are both actors and victims - have a different impact whether we are talking from the perspective of either the great, developed research universities in the United States or the small Catholic universities in Africa. The topics at stake are not simple ones, nor will the conclusions be self-evident or generally accepted."

Fr. Peters stated that "Since Catholic universities are privileged places of reflection for our Catholic communities and for the Church as a whole, a real and open-minded collaboration is essential for the success of their contribution. ... This presupposes what Pope John Paul II called, in his Apostolic Constitution about Catholic universities, 'Ex corde ecclesiae', a 'mutual trust' between university people and Church leaders."

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AUDIENCES

VATICAN CITY, NOV 28, 2002 (VIS) - Today the Holy Father received in separate audiences:

- Leonid Kuchma, president of the Republic of Ukraine, accompanied by his wife and an entourage.

- Cardinal Vinko Puljic, archbishop of Vrhbosna, Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina.

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SIXTH POST-SYNODAL MEETING FOR SPECIAL ASSEMBLY FOR ASIA

VATICAN CITY, NOV 27, 2002 (VIS) - The Council of the General Secretariat of the Synod of Bishops for the Special Assembly for Asia held its sixth meeting November 19-20 under the presidency of Cardinal Jan Schotte, C.I.C.M., in the presence of three cardinals, the patriarch of Jerusalem of the Latins, three archbishops, three bishops and four Synod staff members.

The meeting was divided into two plenary sessions, an afternoon of individual study and a group work session. Cardinal Schotte opened the encounter with an account of the activity of the General Secretariat since its last meeting in November 2001, and council members then reported on the situations in their own countries.

In the concluding plenary session, following the oral reports of the two work groups, members composed a list of urgent pastoral needs that will be brought to the attention of episcopal conferences with reference to the post-synodal document. They then decided to hold the next meeting on November 18-19, 2003.

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GOD IS THE ONLY ONE WHO CAN FREE US FROM EVIL AND DEATH

VATICAN CITY, NOV 27, 2002 (VIS) - Psalm 98, "Holy is the Lord, Our God," was the theme of the Pope's catechesis during the general audience celebrated today in the Paul VI Hall.

John Paul II explained that Psalm 98 "is a hymn raised by the people of God to the Lord Who governs the world and history as transcendent and supreme sovereign."

"The faithful, at the beginning of the day," he said, "know that they will not be abandoned to the mercy of a blind and dark fate, or destined to uncertainty as to their freedom, or left to the decisions of others, or dominated by the events of history. They know that the Creator and Savior rises in His grandeur, holiness and mercy above of all earthly realities."

The Holy Father affirmed that "God is superior to us and He is infinitely above all creatures. However, this transcendence does not make Him a strange and impassive God: when He is invoked, He responds. God is the One Who saves, the only one who can free humanity from evil and death."

After underscoring the profound link between "'holiness' and God's closeness", the Psalmist recalls that "God was continually in contact with His people" and that "He spoke and was listened to, punished wrongs, but also forgave."

"God came in our midst," he ended, "through His Son Who became one of us in order to instill His life and His holiness in us. For this reason, we approach God not with terror but with trust. In Christ we have the supreme holy priest, innocent, undefiled. ... Thus, our hymn is filled with serenity and joy: it exalts the Lord king who dwells among us, wiping away every tear from our eyes."

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POPE ATTENDS CONCERT, "A HYMN FROM THE MOUNTAIN TOPS"

VATICAN CITY, NOV 27, 2002 (VIS) - A concert entitled "A hymn from the Mountain Tops" was offered last evening in the Paul VI Hall by the National Union of Mountain Communities, in the presence of John Paul II. The Pope remarked that "this solemn event assumes singular importance in the framework of the Year of the Mountains," sponsored by the United Nations.

He thanked the orchestra from Pecs, Hungary, the choir from Italy's Friuli-Venezia Giulia region and the National Union of Mountain Communities, noting that the union "wished to celebrate its 50th anniversary offering the Pope, also a lover of mountains, this very pleasing gift."

The Holy Father said he followed "the splendid musical compositions of Raff and Brahms," as well as the accompanying images of mountains, "with great emotion," adding that this "has invited us to raise a hymn of praise to the Creator for the marvels of nature, the work of His hands. The arduous majesty of mountain summits stimulates us to underscore those values of tenacity and humility that are indispensable for facing everyday life and for approaching with ardor the high mountain of holiness."

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