receive and Audience:
CITY 'OF THE VATICAN Sunday, March 13, 2011 (ZENIT.org) .- Here is the text of the speech that Pope Benedict XVI on Saturday morning to members of the National Association of Italian Municipalities (ANCI), received in audience in the Sala Clementina of the Vatican Apostolic Palace.
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Mayors Ladies!
I extend my cordial greetings to you all and I am grateful for your presence, which is part of a tradition established over time, as evidenced by the audiences granted by the Venerable John Paul II and previous popes, and as mentioned by the President of the , whom I thank for the kind words full of realism, but also of poetry and beauty with which he introduced our meeting. This fact attests to the special bond that exists between the Pope, the Bishop of Rome and Primate of Italy, and the Italian nation, which has varied in its multitude of towns and villages in one of its characteristics.
The first idea that comes to mind meeting with representatives of the National Association of Italian Municipalities, is the origin of the common expressions of a community that meets, talks, partying and plans together, a community of believers who celebrate the Liturgy of Sunday, and then finds himself in the streets of the old city or in the countryside outside the village church. Even an Italian poet, Carducci, an ode to the people Carnia, recalls, "the rustic virtues of the common / camped large opaque cool / I see, nor the season of the pasture / After starting the day of the feast ...." It 's always alive even today the need to stay in a fraternal community where, for example, parishes and communities are at the same time builders of a modus vivendi justice and solidarity, even amid all the tension and suffering of modern life. The variety of subjects, situations, is not inconsistent with national unity, which is referred to by the 150 th anniversary that is being celebrated. Unity and diversity are at different levels, including the ecclesiological, two values \u200b\u200bthat are mutually enriching, if they are kept in the right and mutual balance. Two principles that allow this harmonious coexistence between unity and plurality are those of subsidiarity and solidarity, which are typical of the social teaching of the Church. This social teaching has as its object truth that does not belong only to the assets of the believer, but they are accessible to every rational person. I have been talking about these principles also in the Encyclical "Caritas in Veritate, where the principle of subsidiarity is considered an expression of human freedom." In fact, "Subsidiarity is first and foremost an aid to the person, through the autonomy of intermediate bodies. Such assistance is offered when the person and the social players can not go it alone and it is always designed emancipation, because it promotes freedom and participation through assumption of responsibility "(n. 57). As such," it is therefore a principle is particularly suited to managing globalization and directing it towards a true human development "(ibid.)." The principle of subsidiarity must remain closely linked to the principle of solidarity and vice versa, because if the subsidiarity without solidarity runs out in social particularism, it is equally true that without solidarity subsidiarity expires nell'assistenzialismo that humiliates the bearer of need "(n. 58). These principles should be applied anche a livello comunale, in un duplice senso: nel rapporto con le istanze pubbliche statali, regionali e provinciali, così come in quello che le autorità comunali hanno con i corpi sociali e le formazioni intermedie presenti nel territorio. Queste ultime svolgono attività di rilevante utilità sociale, essendo fautrici di umanizzazione e di socializzazione, particolarmente dedite alle fasce emarginate e bisognose. Tra esse rientrano anche numerose realtà ecclesiali, quali le parrocchie, gli oratori, le case religiose, gli istituti cattolici di educazione e di assistenza. Auspico che tale preziosa attività trovi sempre un adeguato apprezzamento e sostegno, anche in termini finanziari.
A questo proposito, desidero ribadire that the Church is not asking for privileges, but you can freely carry out its mission, as it requires a genuine respect for religious freedom. It does in Italy the cooperation that exists between the civil and ecclesial communities. Unfortunately, other countries, the Christian minorities are often victims of discrimination and persecution. I wish to express my appreciation for the motion of February 3, 2011, unanimously approved by your National Council with an invitation to raise awareness of the municipalities belonging to the Association in respect of such changes and reaffirming, at the same time, "the undeniable character religious freedom as the cornerstone of freedom and peaceful coexistence among peoples. "
Inoltre, vorrei sottolineare l’importanza del tema della "cittadinanza", che avete posto al centro dei vostri lavori. Su questo tema la Chiesa in Italia sta sviluppando una ricca riflessione, soprattutto a partire dal Convegno Ecclesiale di Verona, in quanto la cittadinanza costituisce uno degli ambiti fondamentali della vita e della convivenza delle persone. Anche il prossimo Congresso Eucaristico Nazionale di Ancona dedicherà una giornata a tale rilevante tematica, giornata alla quale sono stati opportunamente invitati, come ci è stato detto, i Sindaci italiani.
Oggi la cittadinanza si colloca, appunto, nel contesto della globalizzazione, che si caratterizza, tra l’altro, per i grandi flussi migratori. Di fronte this reality, as I mentioned above, one must be able to combine solidarity and respect for the laws, lest they upset the social life and take into account the principles of law and cultural and even religious tradition from which originates the Italian nation. This need is felt especially by you, as local administrators, you are closer to people's daily lives. Since you are always requires a special dedication to public service that you offer to citizens, to be promoters of cooperation, solidarity and humanity. History has left us an example of Mayors that their prestige and their commitment have marked the life of the community you rightly pointed out the figure of Giorgio La Pira, a Christian and exemplary public administrator estimated. May this tradition continue to bear fruit for the good of the country and its citizens! For this I assure my prayers and I urge you, distinguished friends, to trust the Lord, because - as the psalm says - "unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman watches in vain" (127.1).
invoke the maternal intercession of the Virgin Mary, venerated by the Italian people in its many shrines and places of spirituality, art and culture, and of the patron saints Francis of Assisi and Catherine of Siena, I bless all of you, your staff el 'whole Italian nation.
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