EU Comission President Juncker in dialogue with EU Bishops

Mgr Jean-Paul Hollerich with Jean-Claude Juncker

Source: COMECE

On the occasion of the 2019 COMECE Spring Assembly yesterday, EU Bishops received Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Union Commission. Together they urged all citizens to engage into the European political debate and vote with responsibility to protect and promote the common good.

The dialogue with the President of the EU Commission was an opportunity for Bishops to exchange on the main achievements and remaining priorities of Juncker's Presidency.

In his contribution, President Juncker stated: "I am a fervent advocate of the social doctrine of the Church. It is one of the most noble teachings of our Church. All of this is part of a doctrine that Europe does not apply often enough. I would like us to rediscover the values and guiding principles of the social teaching of the Church."

European Bishops reaffirmed the Church's commitment to address the challenges that our continent and our people have to face: digitalisation and technological development, demography, global warming and migration.

They highlighted the need to combine efforts of all people of good will to better serving the common good, placing the human person at the heart of EU public policies.

Days before a possible Brexit and two months ahead of the EU 2019 parliament elections, (See: www.comece.eu/eu-bishops-launch-statement-in-view-of-the-2019-eu-elections?ts=1552660728 ) the Bishops recalled EU citizens' responsibility to exercise their right and fulfil their duty to vote, giving new impulse to the European construction. The electoral results will condition the political decisions impacting on our day to day lives during the next 5 years.

The Bishops expressed the need to promote a European context of dialogue in order to discover opportunities behind challenges, proposing effective solutions for the wellbeing of all those living in the European Union.

For more information on the dialogue between the EU Bishops and EU institutions, see:
www.comece.eu/dl/nMONJmoJKLJqx4KJKJmMJKMN/0_Factsheet_Dialogue_with_EU_EN.pdf?ts=1552660689 in accordance with Article 17 TFEU. www.europarl.europa.eu/at-your-service/en/be-heard/religious-and-non-confessional-dialogue