VATICAN INFORMATION SERVICE   
   YEAR XXV - # 709   
   DATE 11-06-2015   
      
   Summary:   
   - Pope Receives Canadian Prime Minister: Cooperation and Dialogue between   
   Federal Government and Church   
   - Pope to Participants of FAO's 39th Conference: Responding to the Imperative   
   of   
   Right of All to Food   
   - To Bishops of Latvia and Estonia: Be Near to Migrant Families   
   - Pope's Audience with Vladimir Putin: Ukraine and Middle East, Key Points of   
   Meeting   
   - National Holy See Day at Milan's Expo 2015   
   - ROACO Plenary Assembly to Analyze Situation of Christians in Middle East,   
   Armenia, Ethiopia, Eritrea, and the Holy Land   
   - Audiences   
   - Other Pontifical Acts   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Pope Receives Canadian Prime Minister: Cooperation and Dialogue between   
   Federal   
   Government and Church   
   Vatican City, 11 June 2015 (VIS) - This morning, Pope Francis received in   
   audience the Prime Minister of Canada, Mr. Stephen Harper, who subsequently met   
   with Archbishop Paul R. Gallagher, Secretary for Relations with States.   
   During the course of the cordial discussions, the good relations existing   
   between the Holy See and Canada were noted, as was the positive spirit of   
   cooperation and dialogue between the Canadian federal government and the   
   Church.   
   In particular, Canada?s commitment to defend and promote religious freedom in   
   the context of fundamental human rights were treated.   
   Later in the conversation, international political issues were discussed, with   
   reference to Europe and the Middle East and the prospects for peace in that   
   region, as well as the fight against terrorism and environmental issues.   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    Pope to Participants of FAO's 39th Conference: Responding to the Imperative of   
   Right of All to Food   
   Vatican City, 11 June 2015 (VIS) ? The right to food, the problem of waste, the   
   impact of the market on hunger, the primacy of agricultural development, water   
   issues, land grabbing, and dependence on external aid were the central themes   
   of   
   the address given this morning by Pope Francis to the 450 participants at the   
   39th Conference of the FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization), whom he   
   received   
   in audience in the Clementine Hall of the Apostolic Palace.   
   ?Faced with the poverty of many of our brothers and sisters,? said the Pope,   
   ?sometimes I think that the issue of hunger and agricultural development has   
   now   
   become one of the many problems in this time of crisis. ? Our tendency to   
   'defect' when faced with difficult issues is human,? but ?we must respond to   
   the   
   imperative of access to necessary food is a rightfor all. Human rights permit   
   no   
   exclusions. Certainly, we can take comfort knowing that the number of hungry   
   persons in 1992, 1.2 million, has been reduced even though the world population   
   has grown. However, there is little point to noting the numbers or even   
   projecting a series of concrete commitments and recommendations to be   
   implemented in policies and investments if we neglect the obligation to   
   'eradicate hunger and prevent all forms of malnutrition in the world'.?   
   ?Many are worried about statistics regarding waste: a third of food produced is   
   included under this point,? observed the pontiff. ? Reducing waste is   
   essential,   
   as is reflection on the non-alimentary use of agricultural products, which go   
   in   
   large amounts to animal feed or to produce biofuels. Certainly we must ensure   
   increasingly healthy environmental conditions, but can we keep excluding   
   some?It   
   is necessary to raise the awareness of all countries regarding the type of   
   nutritionadopted, and this varies depending on the latitudes. ? But, both in   
   quality and quantity, the situation of uncertainty determined by the weather,   
   by   
   increased demand, and price uncertainty weigh down the situation.?   
   ?We must also ask ourselves: How much does the market, with its rules, impact   
   world hunger? Of the studies you have made, it has been shown that, since 2008,   
   the price of food has changed trends. It doubled, then stabilized, but with   
   higher values than the previous period. Such volatile prices impede the poorest   
   from making plans or keeping a minimum nutrition. The causes are many. We are   
   rightly concerned with climate change but we cannot forget financial   
   speculation. An example is the prices of wheat, rice, corn, soy, ? sometimes   
   linked to performance funds and therefore, the higher the price the more the   
   fund earns. Here as well, we must take another path, convincing ourselves that   
   the products of the land have a value that we can all'sacred' because they are   
   the fruit of the daily labor of persons, families, and communities of farmers.?   
   ?The purpose of the FAO includes the working of the land, fisheries, livestock,   
   forests,? recalled Pope Francis. ?This development must be at the center of   
   economic activity ...this means supporting effective resilience, specifically   
   reinforcing communities' capacities to cope with crises?natural ones or those   
   caused by human action?and paying attention to the different needs. Thus it   
   will   
   be possible to pursue a decent standard of living. This commitment includes   
   other critical points. First, it seems difficult to accept the general   
   resignation, disinterest, and even absence of so many, even of states. A times   
   there is the sense that hunger is an unpopular topic, an insoluble problem that   
   can't be dealt with in a legislative or presidential term and therefore can't   
   guarantee consensus. The reasons that lead to limiting thecontributions of   
   ideas, technology, expertise, and funding lie in the unwillingness to make   
   binding commitments seeing that we hide behind the question of the world   
   economic crisis and the idea that there is hunger in all countries. ? But then   
   it is forgotten that, if poverty in one country is a social problem that can   
   find solutions, in other contexts it is a social problem and social policies   
   are   
   not enough to address it. This attitude may change if we put solidarity at the   
   heart of international relations, transposing the vocabulary of policy options   
   to a policy of the other.?   
   The Pope also noted the needs of educating persons regarding a proper   
   nutrition... ?We know that in the West the problem is high consumption and   
   waste. In the South, however, it is necessary to encourage local production to   
   ensure nutrition. In many countries with 'chronic hunger', [local produce] is   
   replaced by foreign food, perhaps initially through assistance. Butemergency   
   aid   
   is not enough and does not always reach the right hands. It creates a   
   dependence   
   on large producers and, if the country lacks the financial means, then the   
   population winds up not eating and hunger grows.?   
   ?Climate change also makes us think of the forced displacement of populations   
   and the many humanitarian tragedies caused by lack of resources, particularly   
   water, which is already a source of conflict that is expected to increase. It   
   isn't enough to assert that there is a right to water without making the effort   
   to achieve sustainable consumption of this good and to eliminate any waste. ?   
   Besides water, land use also remains a serious problem. Ever more troubling is   
   the seizure of arable land by transnational companies and states, which not   
   only   
   deprives farmers of an essential commodity, it also directly affects countries'   
   sovereignty. There are too many areas where the foods produced go to foreign   
   countries and the localpopulation is impoverished twice, since they have   
   neither   
   food nor land. ? We know that the world's food production is largely the work   
   of   
   family farms. Therefore it is important,? the Pope concluded, ?that the FAO   
   strengthen its partnerships and projects in favor of family businesses, and   
   encourage states to equitably regulate land use and ownership. This may help   
   eliminate the inequalities that are now at the center of international   
   attention.?   
      
   ___________________________________________________________   
      
    To Bishops of Latvia and Estonia: Be Near to Migrant Families   
   Vatican City, 11 June 2015 (VIS) ? This morning Pope Francis received in   
   audience prelates of the Episcopal Conferences of Latvia and Estonia at the   
   conclusion of their ad Limina visit. In the speech he addressed to them he   
   reminded them that the Lord has chosen them ?to work in a society that, having   
   been for so long oppressed by regimes based on ideologies that are contrary to   
   human dignity and freedom, is today called to measure itself against other   
   insidious dangers, such as secularism and relativism. While that may make it   
   harder for your pastoral outreach, I urge you continue tirelessly, never losing   
   faith, in proclaiming Christ's Gospel, the Word of salvation for persons of   
   every time and culture.?   
   ?In this renewed evangelization you are not alone. You have your priests who,   
   although few and of many diverse origins, are there by your side with   
   respect,obedience, and generosity. ? I encourage you to take good care of their   
   formation, both in terms of theological and ecclesial preparation as well as in   
   terms of human maturity rooted in a solid spirituality and characterized by   
   friendly openness, capable of discerning the reality of the world in which we   
   live. ? For the growth and journey of your communities, the presence of men and   
   women in the consecrated life is also extremely valuable. Especially in this   
   Year dedicated to them it is opportune to make them understand that they are   
   not   
   only appreciated for the services they render but primarily for the richness of   
   their charisms and their witness, for the very fact that they are, [their   
   presence] spreads the perfume of Christ among the people of God in how they   
   follow the Gospel counsels.?   
   ?The participation of the lay faithful is also indispensable for the mission of   
   evangelization,? Pope Francis emphasized. ?Your nearness and concern will help   
   themcarry out those responsibilities that, according to the teachings of   
   Vatican   
   Council II, they are called to undertake in the cultural, social, political,   
   and   
   also charitable and catechetical fields. ? The lay faithful are the living path   
      
   --- MPost/386 v1.21   
    * Origin: Sursum Corda! BBS=Huntsville AL=bbs.sursum-corda.com (1:396/45)