“Christians have a special responsibility not just to speak about Europe’s Christian roots in the past, but also to ensure that Europe’s future—with all its pluralism –will benefit from a vibrant Christian contribution,” said Archbishop Diarmuid Martin, speaking Friday at the Pontifical Theological Academy in Krakow, Poland. In his address, Archbishop Martin made specific reference to the controversy surrounding the recognition of Christianity in the proposed European Constitution.
“To talk about the contribution of Christianity to the formation of a European identity is not to talk about ideology but to talk about a fact, a fact which cannot be denied,” he said.
“The strident opposition in certain quarters can only be explained by a desire by some to consolidate a particular vision of a ‘secularized Europe’ where religion would be totally privatized, indeed marginalized.”
The Archbishop said that in advocating for the recognition of the role of Christianity in the forging of a European identity, Christians are concerned not just for their own particular interests, but in ensuring that the new Europe which is emerging is truly welcoming of the contribution of all believers.
At an even more foundational level, the reference to its Christian roots would have ensured that the great European project could not be viewed solely as a political or economic achievement without reference to the moral and religious aspirations of many of its founders, he said.
Archbishop Martin also spoke of the Church’s responsibility for the evangelisation of culture.
In Ireland, he said, we are confronted with the need for a first proclamation of the Gospel to sizeable numbers who have never heard of Christ.
“Even more urgent, and this may come as a surprise to those whose image of Ireland may have been shaped by its past, is a renewed proclamation for those already baptized,” the Archbishop pointed out.
“The particular challenge in Ireland is to help many nominal Catholics, including some who notwithstanding regular attendance in church have never reflected personally on the faith they have assimilated through societal and familial influence, to know who Jesus is.”
In particular, he spoke of the renewal of parish structures, evangelization of young people by young people, and the proclamation of the central teachings of Christianity in centers of cultural and intellectual formation.
“In renewing our Church and in committing ourselves to a new evangelization, we are both being faithful to the mission of the Church - evangelizing is the grace and vocation proper to the Church, her deepest identity – and we are helping to construct a new Europe,” he concluded.
Archbishop Martin is Vice President of the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Commission (COMECE).
The conference in Krakow entitled From the Treaties of Rome to the Constitutional Reform Treaty was opened by the Archbishop of Krakow, Cardinal Stanislaw Dzwisz.
Other speakers at the conference Friday included Cardinal Secretary of State, Tarcisio Bertone, President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pottering and Professor Lech Kaczynski, President of Poland.
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