VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE
YEAR XXII - # 208
DATE 25-11-2014

Summary:
- Francis prays for the intercession of the Virgin for his trip to Strasbourg
- The Pope to the European Parliament: dignity and transcendence, key concepts
for the future of Europe
- Francis at the Council of Europe: imposed peace is not enough - it must be
loved, free and fraternal
- The Pope receives the President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
- The Pope to convoke a conference in Haiti in January 2015, five years after
the earthquake that devastated the island
- Audiences

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 Francis prays for the intercession of the Virgin for his trip to Strasbourg
 Vatican City, 25 November 2014 (VIS) - Yesterday afternoon, as is his custom
before a journey, at around 5.30 the Holy Father went to the Basilica of St.
Mary Major to pray before the image of the Virgin Salus Popoli Romani and to
ask for her intercession for his apostolic trip to the European institutions
based in Strasbourg. Francis prayed for around half an hour and left before
the Virgin a floral tribute in blue and yellow, the colours of the European
flag.

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 The Pope to the European Parliament: dignity and transcendence, key concepts
for the future of Europe
 Vatican City, 25 November 2014 (VIS) - Europe's future depends on the
rediscovery of the vital and indissoluble nexus between dignity and
transcendence, as otherwise it risks slowly losing its soul and the humanistic
spirit that loves and defends. This was Pope Francis' message to the members
of the European Parliament during his visit to the legislative body of the
European Union (EU) in Strasbourg: it is the only international organisation
directly elected by 508 million citizens, and composed of 751 deputies elected
in the 28 member states of the EU.
 The Holy Father left Rome by air shortly before 8 a.m. and arrived in
Strasbourg in 10 a.m., where he was greeted by the French Minister of State
for European Affairs, two deputy presidents, various representatives of the
civil authorities, including the mayor of Strasbourg, Roland Ries, and local
ecclesiastical figures. Pope Francis then travelled by car to the seat of the
Parliament where he was received by President Martin Schulz and, following
presentations by the two delegations of the 14 members of the Bureau of the
Parliament and the 8 presidents of the political groups of the Assembly, he
signed the Gold Book of the Parliament with the following phrase: "I hope that
the European Parliament is always the place where each member contributes to
ensure that Europe, mindful of her past, looks with confidence to the future
to live with hope in the present".
 After attending the Solemn Session of the Parliament and listening to the
speech by President Schulz, Pope Francis addressed the Assembly, recalling
that his visit takes place over a quarter of a century after that of Pope John
Paul II, and many things have changed in Europe and throughout the world in
the intervening period. "The opposing blocs which then divided the continent
in two no longer exist, and gradually the hope is being realised that 'Europe,
endowed with sovereign and free institutions, will one day reach the full
dimensions that geography, and even more, history have given it'. As the
European Union has expanded, the world itself has become more complex and ever
changing; increasingly interconnected and global, it has, as a consequence,
become less and less 'Eurocentric'. Despite a larger and stronger Union,
Europe seems to give the impression of being somewhat elderly and haggard,
feeling less and less a protagonist in a world which frequently regards it
with aloofness, mistrust and even, at times, suspicion.
 "In addressing you today, I would like, as a pastor, to offer a message of
hope and encouragement to all the citizens of Europe. It is a message of hope,
based on the confidence that our problems can become powerful forces for unity
in working to overcome all those fears which Europe - together with the entire
world - is presently experiencing. It is a message of hope in the Lord, who
turns evil into good and death into life. It is a message of encouragement to
return to the firm conviction of the founders of the European Union, who
envisioned a future based on the capacity to work together in bridging
divisions and in fostering peace and fellowship between all the peoples of
this continent. At the heart of this ambitious political project was
confidence in man, not so much as a citizen or an economic agent, but in man,
in men and women as persons endowed with transcendent dignity".
 The Pope stressed the close bond between these two words: "dignity" and
"transcendent".
 "'Dignity' was the pivotal concept in the process of rebuilding which
followed the Second World War", he affirmed. "Our recent past has been marked
by the concern to protect human dignity, in contrast to the manifold instances
of violence and discrimination which, even in Europe, took place in the course
of the centuries. Recognition of the importance of human rights came about as
the result of a lengthy process, entailing much suffering and sacrifice, which
helped shape an awareness of the unique worth of each individual human person.
This awareness was grounded not only in historical events, but above all in
European thought, characterised as it is by an enriching encounter whose
'distant springs are many, coming from Greece and Rome, from Celtic, Germanic
and Slavic sources, and from Christianity which profoundly shaped them', thus
forging the very concept of the 'person'.
 "Today, the promotion of human rights is central to the commitment of the
European Union to advance the dignity of the person, both within the Union and
in its relations with other countries. This is an important and praiseworthy
commitment, since there are still too many situations in which human beings
are treated as objects whose conception, configuration and utility can be
programmed, and who can then be discarded when no longer useful, due to
weakness, illness or old age".
 Promoting the dignity of the person, he continued, "means recognising that he
or she possesses inalienable rights which no one may take away arbitrarily,
much less for the sake of economic interests", yet "care must be taken not to
fall into certain errors which can arise from a misunderstanding of the
concept of human rights and from its misuse. Today there is a tendency to
claim ever broader individual rights; underlying this is a conception of the
human person as detached from all social and anthropological contexts. ... The
equally essential and complementary concept of duty no longer seems to be
linked to such a concept of rights. As a result, the rights of the individual
are upheld, without regard for the fact that each human being is part of a
social context wherein his or her rights and duties are bound up with those of
others and with the common good of society itself".
 The Pontiff emphasised, "I believe, therefore, that it is vital to develop a
culture of human rights which wisely links the individual, or better, the
personal aspect, to that of the common good, of the ‘all of us' made up of
individuals, families and intermediate groups who together constitute society.
... To speak of transcendent human dignity thus means appealing to human
nature, to our innate capacity to distinguish good from evil, to that
'compass' deep within our hearts, which God has impressed upon all creation.
Above all, it means regarding human beings not as absolutes, but as beings in
relation. In my view, one of the most common diseases in Europe today is the
loneliness typical of those who have no connection with others. This is
especially true of the elderly, who are often abandoned to their fate, and
also in the young who lack clear points of reference and opportunities for the
future. It is also seen in the many poor who dwell in our cities and in the
disorientation of immigrants who came here seeking a better future".
 This loneliness, he remarked, "has become more acute as a result of the
economic crisis, whose effects continue to have tragic consequences for the
life of society. In recent years, as the European Union has expanded, there
has been growing mistrust on the part of citizens towards institutions
considered to be aloof, engaged in laying down rules perceived as insensitive
to individual peoples, if not downright harmful. In many quarters we encounter
a general impression of weariness and ageing, of a Europe which is ... no
longer fertile and vibrant. As a result, the great ideas which once inspired
Europe seem to have lost their attraction, only to be replaced by the
bureaucratic technicalities of its institutions. Together with this, we
encounter certain rather selfish lifestyles, marked by an opulence which is no
longer sustainable and frequently indifferent to the world around us, and
especially to the poorest of the poor. To our dismay we see technical and
economic questions dominating political debate, to the detriment of genuine
concern for human beings. Men and women risk being reduced to mere cogs in a
machine that treats them as items of consumption to be exploited, with the
result that - as is so tragically apparent - whenever a human life no longer
proves useful for that machine, it is discarded with few qualms, as in the
case of the terminally ill, the elderly who are abandoned and uncared for, and
children who are killed in the womb. This is the great mistake made 'when
technology is allowed to take over'; the result is a confusion between ends
and means. It is the inevitable consequence of a 'throwaway culture' and an
uncontrolled consumerism".
 Francis reminded the members of parliament that they are called to a great
mission which may however appear impossible: tending to the needs of
individuals and peoples. "To care for individuals and peoples in need means
protecting memory and hope; it means taking responsibility for the present
with its situations of utter marginalisation and anguish, and being capable of
bestowing dignity upon it. How, then, can hope in the future be restored, so
that, beginning with the younger generation, there can be a rediscovery of
that confidence needed to pursue the great ideal of a united and peaceful
Europe, a Europe which is creative and resourceful, respectful of rights and
conscious of its duties?"
 To answer this question, the Pope referred to Raphael's celebrated fresco of
the "School of Athens", found in the Vatican. "Plato and Aristotle are in the
centre. Plato's finger is pointed upward, to the world of ideas, to the sky,
to heaven as we might say. Aristotle holds his hand out before him, towards
the viewer, towards the world, concrete reality. This strikes me as a very apt
image of Europe and her history, made up of the constant interplay between
heaven and earth, where the sky suggests that openness to the transcendent -
to God - which has always distinguished the peoples of Europe, while the earth
represents Europe's practical and concrete ability to confront situations and
problems. The future of Europe depends on the recovery of the vital connection
between these two elements. A Europe which is no longer open to the
transcendent dimension of life is a Europe which risks slowly losing its own
soul and that 'humanistic spirit' which it still loves and defends. ... I
consider to be fundamental not only the legacy that Christianity has offered
in the past to the social and cultural formation of the continent, but above
all the contribution which it desires to offer today, and in the future, to
Europe's growth. This contribution does not represent a threat to the
secularity of states or to the independence of the institutions of the
European Union, but rather an enrichment. This is clear from the ideals which
shaped Europe from the beginning, such as peace, subsidiarity and reciprocal
solidarity, and a humanism centred on respect for the dignity of the human
person".
 Pope Francis went on to reiterate the readiness of the Holy See and the
Catholic Church, through the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of Europe
(COMECE), to engage in "meaningful, open and transparent dialogue with the
institutions of the European Union. I am likewise convinced that a Europe
which is capable of appreciating its religious roots and of grasping their
fruitfulness and potential, will be all the more immune to the many forms of
extremism spreading in the world today, not least as a result of the great
vacuum of ideals which we are currently witnessing in the West, since 'it is
precisely man's forgetfulness of God, and his failure to give him glory, which
gives rise to violence'. Here I cannot fail to recall the many instances of
injustice and persecution which daily afflict religious minorities, and
Christians in particular, in various parts of our world. Communities and
individuals today find themselves subjected to barbaric acts of violence: they
are evicted from their homes and native lands, sold as slaves, killed,
beheaded, crucified or burned alive, under the shameful and complicit silence
of so many.

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