(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met on Monday with the Croatian member of the Collegial Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dragan Covic. Leaders of country’s three ethnic communities, Bosnians, Croats and Serbs, were elected to the tripartite presidency following a ballot last November.
In a statement following the audience in the Vatican, the Holy See press office said the two leaders talked about bilateral relations and other common concerns, particularly regarding the contribution that Catholics make to the building up of society.
Please see below the full statement from the Holy See press office:
This morning, Monday 15 December 2014, the Holy Father Francis received in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace His Excellency Mr. Dragan Čović, Croatian member of the Collegial Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by His Excellency Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States.
During the cordial discussions, the Parties focused on the situation in the country, with particular reference to the contribution of Catholics to the edification of society and especially their commitment in the field of reconstruction following the devastation caused by floods last spring. Satisfaction was expressed regarding the good bilateral relations, and several issues were discussed in relation to the application of the 2006 Basic Agreement, which governs the relationships and collaboration between the Church and the State for the common good.
Finally, various themes relating to regional and international politics were considered.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met on Monday with the Croatian member of the Collegial Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dragan Covic. Leaders of country’s three ethnic communities, Bosnians, Croats and Serbs, were elected to the tripartite presidency following a ballot last November.
In a statement following the audience in the Vatican, the Holy See press office said the two leaders talked about bilateral relations and other common concerns, particularly regarding the contribution that Catholics make to the building up of society.
Please see below the full statement from the Holy See press office:
This morning, Monday 15 December 2014, the Holy Father Francis received in audience in the Vatican Apostolic Palace His Excellency Mr. Dragan Čović, Croatian member of the Collegial Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who subsequently met with His Eminence Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin, accompanied by His Excellency Archbishop Dominique Mamberti, Secretary for Relations with States.
During the cordial discussions, the Parties focused on the situation in the country, with particular reference to the contribution of Catholics to the edification of society and especially their commitment in the field of reconstruction following the devastation caused by floods last spring. Satisfaction was expressed regarding the good bilateral relations, and several issues were discussed in relation to the application of the 2006 Basic Agreement, which governs the relationships and collaboration between the Church and the State for the common good.
Finally, various themes relating to regional and international politics were considered.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis met on Monday with the Croatian member of the Collegial Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dragan Covic. Leaders of country’s three ethnic communities, Bosnians, Croats and Serbs, were elected to the tripartite presidency following a ballot last November. In a statement following the audience in the Vatican, the Holy See press…
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(Vatican Radio) Catholic communication as courageous truth-telling that opens channels of dialogue and speaks to the whole person: this was the three-fold theme of Pope Francis’ remarks to the management, journalists and technical staff of TV 2000 – the television broadcaster of the Italian Bishops’ Conference – on Monday, during a special audience for them in Paul VI Hall.
“Catholic media,” said the Holy Father in remarks prepared for the occasion, “have an extremely challenging mission as regards social communication: that of seeking to safeguard communication from everything that deforms it and bends it to other ends.” Pope Francis went on to say that courageous frankness and freedom are the characteristics of the authentic communicator, and of Catholic communications especially.
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The Holy Father also spoke of the duty all communicators have to do justice to the complexities of real life, without losing sight of the truth that is the object of authentic dialogue. “To open, and not to close,” channels of dialogue, said Pope Francis, “is the second task of the communicator.”
Finally, the Pope focused on the need to avoid both sensationalism and platitudes in reporting stories, and the need to cultivate an integral approach to interpersonal communication. “It is necessary to speak to people in their entirety,” he said, “to their mind and to their heart, so that they might be able to see beyond the immediate, beyond a present that is at risk of being amnesiac and fearful of the future.”
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) A meeting was held in the Vatican Monday between the Holy See’s Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry . A note from Vatican Press Office spokesman, Fr. Federico Lombardi sj, specified that the American delegation included the U.S. Ambassador to the Holy See, Kenneth Hackett and two members of the State Department staff. The Holy See was represented by three Curia officials responsible for the topics covered.
According to Fr. Lombardi, the main topics discussed were the situation in the Middle East, and the commitment of the U.S. to avoid the escalation of tensions and the explosion of violence; also the commitment to promote a resumption of negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
The United States’ commitment to the closure of the Guantanamo Bay prison was also illustrated and the desire expressed for the Holy See’s assistance in seeking adequate humanitarian solutions for current inmates .
The short time available for Monday’s discussions prevented both sides from examining other issues in depth, though some were mentioned – in particular, the situation in Ukraine and its prospects and the emergency surrounding the Ebola outbreak .
(from Vatican Radio)…