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Ärende: Vatican Information Service (Press Release)
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                               VIS-Press releases

SAFEGUARDING EUROPE'S CHRISTIAN HERITAGE

VATICAN CITY, MAY 15, 2007 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone
S.D.B. has sent a message in the Pope's name to more than 250 Christian
movements and communities which, on Saturday May 12, celebrated the event
"Together for Europe 2007" in the German city of Stuttgart.

In the message, published in German, English, French and Italian, the cardinal
points out how the current initiative "has come to life through the good
ecumenical intuition of Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, and Anglican
groups," seeking "to underline the need to re-affirm together faithfulness to
the Gospel in a Europe that risks losing its original values and giving up on
its Christian roots.

"The words of the Venerable Pope John Paul II," Cardinal Bertone adds, "seem to
be more relevant than ever: 'I would like to mention in a particular way the
loss of Europe's Christian memory and heritage, accompanied by a kind of
practical agnosticism and religious indifference whereby many Europeans give
the impression of living without spiritual roots and somewhat like heirs who
have squandered a patrimony entrusted to them by history.'

"Pope Benedict XVI echoes this consideration. From the beginning of his
pontificate he has never missed an opportunity to recall the importance of
safeguarding the Christian inheritance, the particular richness of the European
continent.

"The appeal not to lose our roots is like a repeated invitation to work
concretely so that believers in Christ of different confessions may unite their
efforts in the service of such a timely and relevant cause. It is a matter of
defending a human and spiritual heritage that is vital for the authentic
development of Europe."

Benedict XVI's wish, the text goes on, is "that the meeting 'Together for
Europe' may strengthen the desire for communion that animates lay movements and
communities of the different Churches; that it may contribute to overcoming
prejudices, nationalism and historical barriers, and may urge people to work so
that the spiritual dimension may not weaken in the Europe of post-modern times.

"All human efforts would amount to nothing," the message concludes, "were we to
be separated from divine support, because 'unless the Lord builds the house,
they labor in vain who build'."
SS/EUROPEAN HERITAGE/BERTONEVIS 070515 (370)

SUMMARY

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