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Installation of the first Nativity scene in the European Parliament / Credit: European People’s Party

CNA Newsroom, Dec 5, 2022 / 12:25 pm (CNA).

Christmas this year marks the first time in its history that the European Parliament has allowed a Nativity scene to be set up at its headquarters in Brussels. Until now, officials of the European institution had considered it “potentially offensive.”

The efforts of Isabel Benjumea, a member in the EU’s House of Representatives from Spain, were key to finally having a Nativity scene on display at the institution.

When she was elected in 2019, Benjumea tried her first year in office to prepare the groundwork for a gift of a Nativity scene to the parliament that would be exhibited during the Christmas season. However, she ran into European bureaucracy and deadlines.

The following year she began to take the necessary steps. The response could not have been more disheartening.

A Nativity scene could not be installed, she was informed by the office of the President of Parliament, because it was “potentially offensive” to nonbelievers.

“This had become a kind of crusade because it seemed unacceptable to me to ignore the Christian roots of Europe,” the parliamentarian told Spanish newspaper ABC.

Finally, this year the effort had the support of the Maltese president of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, although the Nativity scene has only been “authorized as a special exhibition,” which may or may not be renewed in the future.

The Nativity scene on display in the European Parliament is from Murcia, a region in southeastern Spain with a great tradition of Nativity scenes and imagery.

Artisans from the workshop of Jesús Griñán created the Nativity scene.

In his Aug. 24, 2003, Angelus address, St. John Paul II noted that he was prayerfully following the drafting of the Constitutional Treaty of the European Union.

The pontiff said that “the Catholic Church is convinced that the Gospel of Christ, which has been a unifying element of the European peoples for many centuries, should be and continue to be today too an inexhaustible source of spirituality and fraternity. Taking note of this is for the benefit of all, and an explicit recognition of the Christian roots of Europe in the treaty represents the principle guarantee for the continent’s future.”

However, the pope’s efforts were ignored.

In 2007, Pope Benedict XVI strongly criticized the EU for excluding any mention of God or the continent’s Christian roots in the institution’s declarations on the 50th anniversary of its founding.

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA’s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA.

[…]

Rome, Italy, Apr 27, 2020 / 09:30 am (CNA).- Italian students have organized a campaign to uplift and honor the elderly, who have suffered heavy losses in Italy’s coronavirus outbreak.

Offering calls and video messages for elderly residents in isolation and a social media campaign to spread appreciation for seniors in their communities, the Catholic “Youth for Peace” movement is seeking to increase solidarity across generations.

The young people have also collected donations for masks, gloves, and other medical supplies for elderly care homes, where social distancing is difficult.

Italy has the oldest population in Europe, and the second oldest in the world after Japan. More than 20% of Italy’s population is 65 or older, according to the United Nations.

Prior to COVID-19, students involved in “Youth for Peace” used to visit nursing homes on a weekly basis.

Elderly care homes across Europe have been particularly hard hit by the coronavirus which has led to the deaths of more than 26,600 people across Italy.

“Some of the elderly who died were our friends and many of the affected residences were … the sites of our weekly visits,” Youth for Peace said in a statement released on April 27.

With Italy’s lockdown measures still in place, the youth group is seeking to make the Italian hashtag #SalviamoINostriAnziani, which means #SaveOurElderly, go viral.

Adesso tocca a noi!
Salviamo i nostri anziani✌️#salviamoinostrianziani#santegidio #giovaniperlapace❤️? pic.twitter.com/uktjmEIKKJ

— Florian Myrtaj (@Florian09276089) April 21, 2020

Appoggiamo tutti la campagna dei @gxlapace perché gli anziani sono la memoria e il futuro per i giovani ?????? #salviamoinostrianziani pic.twitter.com/2zNkQI3Y1t

— elia (@svr_elia) April 21, 2020

High school and university students posted photos of an elderly acquaintance with the hashtag and a message of appreciation. They also created a group video from their homes calling for “an alternative to death and isolation” for Italy’s seniors.

#SalviamoINostriAnziani
La campagna social dei #GiovaniPerLaPace: il #coronavirus sta uccidendo tanti anziani. Troppi. Soprattutto nelle case di riposo. È ora di cambiare. pic.twitter.com/yKWFAqOCNm

— Giovani per la Pace #SalviamoINostriAnziani (@gxlapace) April 21, 2020

Some of these posts were shared on Italy’s Liberation Day, April 25, when Italians marked the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Milan and Turin from Nazi occupation. Veterans of Italy’s resistance movement have traditionally marked the anniversary with parades across the country.

One person shared a post with a photo of an old man that stated: “They freed us. Now it’s up to us. We do not abandon them.”

Ci hanno liberato. Ora tocca a noi. Non li abbandoniamo. Liberiamoli. #salviamoinostrianziani #25Aprile #Festadellaliberazione pic.twitter.com/XjvVRGzXca

— Stefano Orlando #SalviamoINostriAnziani (@Steorlando) April 24, 2020

The Youth for Peace movement is linked to the Community of Sant’Egidio, a lay Catholic movement centered on peace and helping the poor. The youth group is active in schools and universities to promote solidarity with the elderly, migrants, and the homeless.

As a part of the Save Our Elderly campaign, Youth for Peace has called for Italians to “rethink” institutional nursing homes, and to strengthen home care and co-housing models.

“Every senior has the right to live in a place he can call home. Of these possible solutions, the Youth for Peace want to be promoters and, in the name of an intergenerational alliance, intend to give voice to those who, in the dramatic days of the pandemic, died in silence,” it said.

#salviamoinostrianziani aderiamo alla campagna dei GxP che vogliono che rivediamo il sistema delle case di riposo per dare agli anziani una prospettiva di vita fatta di affetti, rispetto e iniziative da condividere con chi è più giovane pic.twitter.com/4yQhPPe4TC

— luana virgili (@luanavirgili) April 22, 2020

[…]

Vienna, Austria, Apr 5, 2018 / 03:05 pm (CNA/EWTN News).- The Muslim community in Austria is calling for more dialogue surrounding the government’s recent proposal to ban headscarves, or hijabs, for young girls in schools.

The proposal, which is being dubbed a “child protection law,” will be drafted later this year and could affect girls up to the age of 10. Austria’s new coalition government has said this new measure would protect the nation’s culture from Islamic influences and the infiltration of parallel societies, according to the BBC.

“Our goal is to confront any development of parallel societies in Austria,” said Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, of the Austrian People’s Party, to the local ORF Radio.

Kurz additionally noted concern that the headscarves worn by young girls in schools was becoming a problem, calling it a “growing phenomenon,” although he did not give further details.
 
The Muslim community in Austria voiced concerns over the measure, calling the proposal “counterproductive.” They also remarked that “very few” girls under the age of 10 wear headscarves to school and have requested more dialogue on the issue.

A ban on wearing in public burqas or niqabs, which cover the face, was implemented last year, though hijabs are allowed.

Kurz formed last year a coalition government with the Freedom Party of Austria, following an October 2017 legislative election. The Austrian People’s Party has championed issues such as stricter immigration regulations after Austria absorbed a number of refugees, who make up around 2 percent of the nation’s 8.7 million population.

Austria is not the only European country which has considered measures to ban religious headscarves. The Court of Justice of the European Union has allowed a qualified ban on headscarves in the workplace. The ban additionally forbade other religious garb, including crucifixes, skullcaps, and turbans, from being worn while at work, depending on internal company rules.

The EU ruling came under fire from critics concerned about religious freedom, including Adina Portaru, legal counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom International in Brussels.

In a previous interview with CNA, Portaru called the measure “highly problematic,” since it “ultimately allows private businesses to implement rules which violate the fundamental right to freedom of religion.”

“Nobody should be forced to choose between their religion and their profession,” she continued.

[…]