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EU External Affairs, Policy Areas, Press

Press Release

Reactions of Cardinal Marx on Pope Francis’ speech to the Heads of State and Government of the EU

Pope Francis received the Heads of State and Government of 27 EU Member States on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome. In his speech, he called on them to discern “the paths of hope, identifying specific ways forward to ensure that the significant steps taken thus far have not been wasted, but serve as the pledge of a long and … Continue reading »

Migration & Asylum, Policy Areas, Press

Invitation

Lunch debate: Migration and Integral Human Development: 50 years after Populorum Progressio

In 2017 we commemorate the 50th anniversary of the publication of Encyclical Populorum Progressio by Pope Paul VI whose enriching reflection shifted development to the center of the question of social justice. From then on the concept of integral human development (“the good of every man and of the whole man”) entered for good into Catholic Social Teaching. War and violence, or lack of social, … Continue reading »

EU External Affairs, Policy Areas, Press

NEWS

How to implement a global concept of defence?

COMECE organised a roundtable debate on the possibilities to better articulate civilian and military aspects of a global concept of defence. 25 stakeholders from European External Action Sevice, EU Military Staff, European Commission, European Parliament as well as NATO, UN and from the humanitarian field discussed the opportunities to strengthen the coherence of civil-military relations at the European level. In the light of the current … Continue reading »

Press

NEWS

COMECE Secretary general met with Mairead McGuinness

Fr Olivier Poquillon OP met with Mairead McGuinness, for the first time after her election as the new Vice President of the European Parliament in charge of the dialogue with Religions. They exchanged views on their main points of interest and discussed the best way to allow a positive contribution of the Church to on-going debates in accordance with Article 17 TFEU.

EU External Affairs, International Religious Freedom, Policy Areas, Press

NEWS

African Bishops´ Conference visits COMECE

Africa and Europe are bound together by history, geography and a common destiny. They also share a community of values on which the Bishops from Africa and Europe wish to build. To mark this close relationship, COMECE received a delegation from the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) led by its President, H.E. Gabriel Mbilingi, Archbishop of Lubango (Angola). The Vice-President of … Continue reading »

Press

NEWS

Dutch Bishops on the Common good: interview with Mgr Hoogenboom

The Dutch Bishops published a joint letter “Together responsible for the Common Good” in order to encourage people to vote for the forthcoming national elections, on March 15th. They encourage citizens not to let themselves being influenced by fear and alarmist speeches, and rather keep in mind the social teaching of the Church on subjects such as life, compassion, solidarity and hospitality for the refugees. … Continue reading »

Migration & Asylum, Policy Areas, Press

NEWS

What actions to better accompany migrants?

Nearly 400,000 migrants, including 94,000 minors, have arrived in Europe by sea in 2016. The peak of the migration crisis has passed but many lessons can be learned. The COMECE Working Group on Migration and Asylum met on 9 March 2017 to discuss this subject. Sant’Egidio and other Catholic associations try to mitigate the lengthy national reactions by developing humanitarian corridors. However, this system must … Continue reading »

Policy Areas, Press, Social & Economic Affairs

News

Integration of refugees: COMECE discusses with MEP

The EU needs to apply a more holistic approach to the integration of refugees. This was the outcome of the dialogue COMECE organised with Thomas Mann (EPP), member of the EU Parliament, and several Catholic organisations. Drawing from their own experiences, Caritas Europa and the Jesuit Refugee Service Europe stressed that welcoming refugees has to go hand-in-hand with orientation courses, language assistance and psycho-social support. … Continue reading »

Policy Areas, Press, Social & Economic Affairs

NEWS

European Day for a Work-Free Sunday: Call for Action!

In Europe, the proportion of workers reporting working Sundays increased between 2010 and 2015. COMECE believes that a work-free Sunday is an essential pillar of the European social model. Together with the European Sunday Alliance, we launch a call for action to show the need for a common EU-wide regulation. Sunday is of great importance because it allows families to spend time together, employees to … Continue reading »

Press

NEWS

Dutch Bishops mark their support to European project

«We came to Brussels to express our commitment with the European Union» said Mgr Hoogenboom on the occasion of the visit of the Dutch Bishop’s Conference to the European Institutions and to COMECE in Brussels, on 20-21 February. The delegation was led by His Excellency Mgr Van den Hende, Bishop of Rotterdam and President of the Dutch Bishops’ Conference. The Bishops met at the European … Continue reading »