Pope to Promulgate "Ecclesia in Europa" on June 28

VATICAN CITY, MAY 20, 2003 (ZENIT.org).- On June 28, eve of the solemnity of Sts. Peter and Paul, John Paul II will promulgate the apostolic exhortation "Ecclesia in Europa" from the second Synod of Bishops of Europe in 1999.

The news was confirmed today by Bishop Piero Marini, master of papal liturgical celebrations, with the publishing of the program of the Holy Father's principal activities for June.

The Synod of Bishops' second special assembly for Europe, was held from October 1-23 of 1999, with the motto "Jesus Christ Living in His Church, Source of Hope for Europe."

The Pope will give the post-synodal apostolic exhortation on the eve of the solemnity of the patron saints of Rome.

The European Synod was presided over by Cardinals Franciszek Macharski, archbishop of Krakow; Joachim Meisner, archbishop of Cologne; and Paul Poupard, president of the Pontifical Council for Culture. The relator was Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, archbishop of Madrid.

The continental assembly was the last of those convoked by John Paul II to prepare the Church for the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000. The previous assemblies were on Africa (1994), America (1997), Asia (1998), and Oceania (1998).

At the end of each of these synods, the Pope wrote a post-synodal apostolic exhortation, which summarizes its conclusions and bears the name of each continent in the title (the first, for example, is "Ecclesia in Africa").

In the final message approved by the European bishops, they appealed for the "new evangelization of Europe" that, according to them, must necessarily include catechesis as the response to the challenges of the dialogue between faith and reason, and faith and science, and by the rediscovery of the sense of mystery in the liturgy in a consumer society.