Cardinal Martino to Receive Romania's Order of the Star

The president of Romania, Traian Basescu, will present the award to the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace at a ceremony Tuesday.

The ceremony will feature an organ concert by Felician Rosca, and will take place in the Church of Santa Maria del Carmelo in Traspontina in Rome.

The concert is a series of concerts titled “Meeting With the Other: Dignity and Solidarity,” being organized by the Romanian Embassy to the Holy See.
 
In a message sent for this occasion, the Romanian president expressed his gratitude for “the solidarity shown by the Catholic Church to the Romanians of the diaspora, whether Orthodox, Catholics, or Greek-Catholics.”

According to the Romanian head of state, the parishes are not only places to find spiritual support, but also places where the faithful learn and show their loyalty to the community and the state that offered them solidarity and welcome.

President Basescu thanked Cardinal Martino for the balanced, open and profoundly human positions that he has expressed in the context of the recent debates over immigration in Italy.