Portugal: the media are “the doors of faith”
Responding to Benedict XVI’s appeal to Church commitment for the new evangelization, the bishops who coordinate the Commissions for Communication of the Bishops’ Conferences of Spain and Portugal convened in Fatima June 25-27 to reflect on the theme: “Media: the doors of faith”. Whilst recalling that social communications media constitute the cultural setting of the action of contemporary men and women, the final document of the meeting underlines that “communicative activity is strongly conditioned by the economic, ideological and political situation, which determines a limitation of the public’s right to have correct information, the supremacy of image on objective reality, and an offer of content induced by the tastes of the recipients, often to the detriment of truth and of the common good”. The Church must use these means with simplicity, clarity and dialoguing attitude: “Communication is an intersecting element within the various ecclesial structures. All pastoral action must be marked by greater communication more e” the Spanish bishops said. This understanding of communication has a twofold purpose: “On the one side, it must be geared at evangelization; on the other, the Church must be committed to a project whereby her institutional and her public image may be adequately and fairly perceived”. The document concludes with “an encouragement to media workers, that they may carry out their task to the service of the dignity of the human person, for the creation of a more just and free society, based on solidarity”, and with an invitation to renew and give topical relevance to the teachings of the Second Vatican Council through the “reading and the practice of the Council document Inter Mirifica on social communications and the documents which later developed these contents”.

Ukraine: school and religious institutions
Initiators of the public project “Education Platform” joined forces to strengthen rights and freedoms during the reform of education in Ukraine so that it corresponds to European educational strategies. These are the conclusions stated in a Memorandum signed, last week, by heads of the Andrey Sheptytsky Educational Foundation; the Institute for Leadership, Innovation, and Development; the Institute for Religious Freedom; the Center for Educational Monitoring, and the Institute for Christian Democracy. The main objectives of the project are to analyze the real situation and trends in the development of secondary school education, and to pay special attention to the advancement of private schools, including the ones run by religious institutions. Signatories aim to “defend the interests of parents and students, Churches, religious organizations and private secondary schools in the process of preparation of new legislation on education and in the course of educational reform in the country”. They hope the project will help to attract the attention of the civil society to the problems regarding state policy in educational process. Educational Platform plans to carry out an analysis of the current state of a network of secondary schools founded by religious organizations and use of religious components in the educational process at state and municipal schools.

Czech Republic: XXIII Catholic Carismatic conference
About five thousand participants are expected to attend the XXIII Catholic Charismatic Conference, due to be held on 11-15 July in Brno, Czech Republic. The main theme of the event, under the patronage of Mons. Vojtech Cikrle, bishop of Brno, is inspired by the Gospel of Luke: “We have reason to celebrate and be glad”. The program will include lectures on fragments of the Bible, adorations, informal meetings, common prayers and Eucharistic celebrations, concerts and theatre performances. Special attention will be paid to deaf and disabled visitors. The opening mass will be presided over by Mons. Cikrle. Special guest at the event will be Daniel Ange, French priest, missionary, author of books for youth and founder of an evangelization school “Jeunesse-Lumière”. Last year’s visit of Fr. Raniero Cantalamessa, preacher of the Papal Household, attracted many visitors, and the members of the coordination team from the Catholic Charismatic Renewal organization hope that this year’s program will take place in a similar atmosphere. For more information: http://konference.cho.cz.