(Lyons) As to the proposal made last night by Patriarch Bartholomew I of setting up a Conference of all the Christian Churches of Europe, Father Duarte da Cunha, secretary general of Ccee, made this comment to SirEuropa: “I too believe that the Christian Churches of Europe are called to be united according to the Lord’s Commandment, "that everyone be one" (John 17,21) so as to serve better contemporary man, who is increasingly confronted by a multitude of complex challenges, including ethical and social ones. This was also what Pope John Paul II asked to do when he wrote, in the Apostolic Exhortation: ‘The strengthening of union within the European Continent urges the Christians to join forces in the integration and reconciliation process through theological, spiritual, ethical and social dialogue’ (188). As a matter of fact, ‘in the Europe that is moving towards political unity, can we admit the Church of Christ is just a factor of disunity and disagreement? Wouldn’t this be one of the greatest outrages of our time?“ (Ecclesia in Europa, 119). Together, the testimony of the Christian Churches in Europe, enriched by their heritage of faith, values and by their social experiences, will be more trustworthy and will have a greater impact with the European institutions”.
© SIR july 20 2009