COUNCIL OF PRESIDENTS OF EUROPEAN BISHOPS’ CONFERENCES OF EUROPE (CCEE)
PLENARY ASSEMBLY : THURSDAY 29TH SEPTEMBER – SUNDAY 2ND OCTOBER 2011
TIRANA, ALBANIA
INTRODUCTION:
The meetings of CCEE established following on the Second Vatican Council have in recent years alternated between Eastern and Western Europe – studying matters of pastoral concern to the Bishops Conferences of Europe.
In 2011 the meetings were scheduled to take place in Tirana Albania – a country known through its suffering throughout the past 2000 years. It is believed that the Albanian people are Illyria in origin – St Paul in his epistles having mentioned Illyria in his letter to the Romans: “So that from Jerusalem and round about unto the Illyricum I have fully preached the Gospel of Christ”. It is believed that Christianity became deeply rooted in the area due to the fact that in 283 AD, Pope Caius, a native of this region, from Salona in Dalmatia, was elected Pope.
Over the following centuries there were many barbarian incursions in to the country – all staunchly resisted. However the period of Turkish rule from 1468 until 1912 was the saddest and bloodiest period for the Albanian people. In a report to the congregation of propaganda fide the Archbishop of Bar wrote the following: “The Albanian Nation is one of the poorest and most abandoned among all nations”.
The majority of the Albanian population accepted the Islamic religion imposed on them by violence and by force – with the Albanian martyrs of the country from 1846 until 1848 being deported to Turkey by force so as to completely eradicate the Christian name and faith from these areas. However even during the period of the Turkish domination the Catholic Church and its Clergy kept the faith alive, protected and cultivated the Albanian language, the culture, the literature, and thus somehow defended the people from the Turkish – Islamic influence and from complete religious and national ruin and destruction.
However some decades later in Albania there was an official State Decree issued on 13th November 1967 which abolished and forbade any kind of religion and due to this decree 2,169 religious churches (churches, mosques, etc), of which 268 Catholic churches were included, were completely destroyed.
However religious freedom was again granted in Albanian in 1990 and since then the Catholic Church has flourished. The Episcopal Conference of Albania has been formed with two Archdioceses, three Dioceses, and an Apostolic Administration. Albanian Catholics are also present outside the Albanian Borders – in countries close by and further afield.
The population of Albania has suffered for many centuries and is still suffering in many ways. The country has never waged war or indeed invaded any countries – and it is hoped that there will be a better future for the country. This hope has been ignited by two great Albanian people from this century: The late ecumenical Patriarch Athenagoras, the prophet of ecumenism; and Mother Teresa of Calcutta, a prophet of Christian love on behalf of suffering humanity.
PROGRAMME OF WORK:
The formal business programme began during the afternoon of Thursday 29th September and continued until the closing Mass in the Cathedral in Tirana on the morning of Sunday 2nd October 2011.
The participants were welcomed by Archbishop Rrok Mirdita the Archbishop of Tirana and the President of the Albanian Bishops Conference; by Cardinal Peter Erdo, the President of CCEE; Mr Sali Berisha, the Prime Minister of Albania; and Archbishop Ramiro Moliner Ingles, the Apostolic Nuncio to Albania.
Welcomed also at lunch on Saturday 1st October were His Grace Selim Muca, Chairman of the Albanian Islamic Community; His Beatitude Anastas Janullatos, the Orthodox Archbishop of Durres, Tirana and all Albania; His Grace Edmund Brahimaj, the Head of the World Holy See of Bektashism; and Pastor Fitor Luca, the President of the Evangelical Fraternity of Albanian.
Proceedings were interrupted on Friday morning when all of the Members of CCEE departed for a formal visit to the Presidential Palace to be greeted by Mr Bamir Topi the President of the Republic of Albania.
Present throughout the Conference were both Cardinal Marc Ouellet, Prefect of the Congregation for Bishops, Archbishop Rino Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Council for Promoting the New Evangelisation, Archbishop Andre Dupuy, Apostolic Nuncio to the European Union, Archbishop Adrianus van Luyn, President of COMECE, Monsignor Aldo Giordano, the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, along with Archbishop Simon Ntamwana, representing SECCAM, and Archbishop Dimas Lara Barbosa, representing CELAM.
MAIN PASTORAL SUBJECT:
The main pastoral subject of the Conference was “the New Evangelisation” beginning with a presentation from Archbishop Rino Fisichella the President of the New Pontifical Council for Evangelisation, speaking on “New Evangelisation in Europe”.
Various spoken submissions were also heard.
Speaking on my own behalf to the Conference I made the following points:
The necessity of the Bishops of the world appreciating the value of new evangelisation themselves. I indicated appreciation of Archbishop Fisichella’s words especially when he stated: “The Bishop is the first proclaimer of the Gospel!”; and also the project to have “mission” to twelve different major dioceses throughout the world. Among our many other activities and stresses at this present time we must have a “passion” for the new evangelisation as stressed by Cardinal Ouellet.
The Church is not respected as it was before in many of our countries – sometimes external factors on other occasions internal disputes within the Church in our countries. Consequently what we must regain is respect not only from our own people but from the peoples of the countries in which we live.
It is necessary also that our Church must “regain leadership” in our countries particularly by our stress on the great moral values which are attacked in various ways in our own time. Great leadership has been given in Scotland following on the visit of Pope Benedict XVI and the Scottish Bishops continue to assert the Church’s teachings as they have done previously and right up to this present time.
There must also be a passing on the sense of the urgency of new evangelisation needed – to priests in particular; to our families; to our teachers and young people perhaps through the use of YOUCAT; and of course remembering the necessity of good preaching by ourselves and by our priests on New Evangelisation in our parishes.
FUTURE PROGRAMMES:
Attention was drawn to the CCEE Agenda for 2011 to 2012 by Monsignor Duarta da Cunha particularly referring to:
The meeting to mark the forty years of CCEE (Rome, 22nd November 2011)
The Europe – Africa Symposium (Rome, 13th – 17th February 2012)
Catechetical Congress (Rome, 7th – 10th May 2012)
Catholic – Orthodox Forum (Lisbon, 4th – 8th June 2012)
Attention to the Bishops was also drawn to the World Meeting of Families in Milan from 30th May to 3rd June 2012 by Cardinal Bagnasco; and to the 50th International Eucharistic Congress to be held in Dublin from 10th to 17th June 2012 by Cardinal Brady.
FINANCES FOR CCEE:
Obviously present finances and planning for the future was discussed – full information on this important matter is contained in another sheet.
OTHER MATTERS:
The participants were housed in a hotel some ten minutes walk from the recently rebuilt Cathedral – Hotel Rogner; the Cathedral and the Archbishop’s House, obviously both newly built, were wonderful testimony to the faith of the Albanian people and to the charity and generosity of the peoples of the world; and on the final evening there was a visit from all of the participants to the ancient Church Capital of Durres to celebrate Vespers in the Co- Cathedral.
All of the General Secretaries of CCEE look forward to a working visit to Scotland at the end of June / beginning of July 2012 when they will be residing in Edinburgh with visits outwith the City of Edinburgh to Glasgow and other places of interest.
At the five yearly elections Cardinal Peter Erdo, the Archbishop of Esztergom – Budapest Hungary was elected the President of CCEE for his second five year term while the co-presidents elected were Cardinal Angelo Bagnasco, the Archbishop of Genoa and Archbishop Jozef Michalika, the Archbishop of Prezemysl, Poland.
The next meeting of the Presidents of CCEE will be held at the Headquarters of the organisation at St Gallen in Switzerland where the offices were initially established some 40 years ago. It is hoped that there will be various celebrations at that time marking the 40th anniversary of CCEE.
FOOTNOTE:
Perhaps the most moving part of our time in Albania was at the formal end of our gathering when an 82 year old native Albanian Nun came to speak to us. She did not know any of our languages but had a nun translator with her. She spoke of her memories of the communist regime which she said would remain with her until her death. She indicated that her only desire during that time of intense persecution in her country was to hear the sound of the bells calling the Catholic community to Mass and confessions, as well as to prayer before the Blessed Sacrament.
She gave God thanks for the grace of the help from priests during the regime – many of these priests had been put to death. She herself secretly received Holy Communion from time to time and sometimes was able to bring it to the sick as well as to conduct marriages in secret. She kept the Blessed Sacrament in her own home hidden in a drawer so that she could also bring Holy Communion to those whom she knew were dying.
She indicated that people defended her and hid her secret apostolate because all in her own village were baptised and trusted her as well as people from other villages around.
She indicated that she was always very lucky – there were many problems but she could still live and practice her faith. Now in her old age she wondered how it had all been possible at all!