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The Holy See is decrying a world situation in which it is easier to get a weapon than to obtain food, shelter and an education. Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, affirmed this at the U.N. Security Council meeting on “Maintenance of International Peace and Security: Strengthening Collective Security Through General Regulation and Reduction of Armaments.”
The human being is not a threat to the environment, but rather its steward, says the Holy See. This was affirmed by Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, before the Second Committee of the 63rd session of the U.N. General Assembly. “It is often said that we have to defend the environment,” the Archbishop said. “The term ‘defense’ could mislead us to see a conflict between the environment and the human being. In this forum, we speak of ‘protection’ or ‘safeguarding.’
It is time to allow and encourage Africans to take a sense of ownership in leading the development of their continent, said Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations, in an address to a U.N. high-level plenary meeting on the theme: “Africa’s Development Needs: State of Implementation of Various Commitments, Challenges and the Way Forward.”“The successes achieved in the consolidation of independence, the overcoming of the ideological conflicts of the 20th century, the abolition of apartheid and, more recently, the strengthening of the African Union and many other regional structures of cooperation, are a sign of hope for the potential of Africa,” the prelate said. “It is now high time to allow and encourage an African sense of ownership in leading a sustained and sustainable developmental process that frees all the peoples of Africa from the scourge of extreme poverty.”
The Vatican is asking for measures to keep the production of biofuels from bringing about increased food prices to the point of threatening starvation in many countries. The demand came from Monsignor Renato Volante, the permanent observer of the Holy See at the Rome-based U.N. Organization for Food and Agriculture (FAO), during the Organization’s Regional Conference for Latin America and the Caribbean, held recently in Brasilia, Brazil.
Benedict XVI’s personal commitment to safeguarding the planet, shown in part by his numerous public appeals, has inspired a change in lifestyles in favor of the environment, affirmed Archbishop Celestino Migliore, permanent observer of the Holy See to the United Nations. “The ongoing debate on climate change has helped put into focus the inescapable responsibility of one and all to care for the environment, thereby building consensus around the common objective of promoting a healthy environment for present and future generations,” he noted.
In an ever more globalized world, emigration is a growing phenomenon that causes particular difficulties for youth who travel far from their countries and families, says Benedict XVI in his message for the World Day of Migrants and Refugees, celebrated on January the 13.
The president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace met with the founder of a U.S.-based organization aiming to replace minefields with farmland, and made an appeal for the elimination of unexploded ordnance. Cardinal Renato Martino spoke in Rome with Heidi Kuhn, founder of the international Roots of Peace, according to a communiqué from the Vatican dicastery.
For the Holy See, eradication of poverty is a priority for the benefit of rich and poor countries alike. Archbishop Silvano Tomasi said this recently at a session of the U.N. Economic and Social Council in Geneva. In his address, the Archbishop called for a re-examination of the reasons why developing countries are unable to rise above poverty, noting that the number of people living on less that $2 a day continues to rise.
A year after Pope Benedict merged it into the Vatican Council for Culture, Holy See Secretary of State, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone has announced that the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue will be restored in its own right.
