Pontifical Commission for the Church in Eastern Europe

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The permanent Pontifical Commission for the Church in Eastern Europe was founded in 1993 by Pope John Paul II (1978–2005). It is an interdicasterial commission of the Roman Curia and reports to the Cardinal Secretary of State .

history

On December 21, 1934, Pope Pius XI. (1922–1939) set up the previously independent commission for Russia . It was now subordinate to the then Congregation for Extraordinary Ecclesiastical Affairs (today: 2nd Section in the State Secretariat of the Vatican ). The incumbent Cardinal Secretary of State was appointed President of the Commission. The Commission's competence was limited to the Russians living in Russia .

With the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991, Pope John Paul II found it necessary to reorganize this previous commission. With the Motu proprio Europae Orientalis of January 15, 1993, he abolished the commission and founded the "permanent interdicasterial commission for the Church in Eastern Europe". Her responsibilities include the Latin and Oriental rites in Eastern Europe , Russia and Asia .

goals and tasks

Its goals are to support the Catholic communities in territories that previously had no religious freedom , to promote ecumenical dialogue with the churches of Orthodox and Oriental tradition, and to coordinate the institutions that are already active in the Eastern European countries. Its task consists in the apostolic mission and interreligious and ecumenical dialogue .

Commissioners

The incumbent Cardinal Secretary of State chairs the presidency, the other members are the Secretary of the Second Section in the Vatican State Secretariat (Relations with States), the Secretaries of the Congregation for the Eastern Churches , the Congregation for the Clergy , the Congregation for Institutes of Consecrated Life and for the Societies of Apostolic Life and the Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity .

literature

Hans-Josef Scheidgen (Eds.), Reimund Haas, Karl Josef Rivinius, Awakening Again in the Memory of the Church - Studies on the History of Christianity in Central and Eastern Europe, Böhlau Verlag, Cologne, 2000, ISBN 3-412-04100-9 , see also Google books [3] (excerpts)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. Interdicasterial commissions (compare: Apostolic Constitution Pastor Bonus Article 21 § 2. "Where necessary, permanent" interdicasterial "commissions are to be set up to deal with those matters which require mutual and frequent consultation". [1] )
  2. ^ Text of the Apostolic Letter Europae Orientalis [2] (Italian)