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| Pope Francis, Receiving Charlemagne Prize, Lauds European Ideals | Pope Francis, Receiving Charlemagne Prize, Lauds European Ideals |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| ROME — Pope Francis, receiving a prize for service toward European unification on Friday, urged leaders to remember the ideals of the European Union’s founders, calling for an “update” of the idea of Europe at a time of mass migration, economic sluggishness and fears about terrorism. | |
| The past can serve as an inspiration “to confront with courage the complex multipolar framework of our own day, and to take up with determination the challenge of ‘updating’ the idea of Europe,” the pope told European leaders in the Sala Regia at the Vatican, where he was awarded the Charlemagne Prize, named for the ninth-century king of the Franks who became Holy Roman Emperor. | |
| “A Europe capable of giving birth to a new humanism based on three capacities: the capacity to integrate, the capacity for dialogue and the capacity to generate,” he said. | |
| Francis was selected as this year’s recipient for reiterating values central to Europe: solidarity, compassion, tolerance and respect for others, as well as for his message of peace and understanding. “You are the pope of hope for all of us,” Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, told the pope at Friday’s ceremony. | |
| The accolade — officially the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen, the German city where Charlemagne died and is buried — was first awarded in 1950 and its organizers describe it as “the oldest and best-known prize awarded for work done in the service of European unification.” | The accolade — officially the International Charlemagne Prize of Aachen, the German city where Charlemagne died and is buried — was first awarded in 1950 and its organizers describe it as “the oldest and best-known prize awarded for work done in the service of European unification.” |
| Past recipients include Winston Churchill, Bill Clinton, Henry A. Kissinger, Vaclav Havel and Pope John Paul II, who won an “extraordinary” Charlemagne Prize in 2004. | Past recipients include Winston Churchill, Bill Clinton, Henry A. Kissinger, Vaclav Havel and Pope John Paul II, who won an “extraordinary” Charlemagne Prize in 2004. |
| As in his 2014 address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, Pope Francis raised his concern that Europe was flagging in its commitment to a common vision. | As in his 2014 address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France, Pope Francis raised his concern that Europe was flagging in its commitment to a common vision. |
| “What has happened to you, the Europe of humanism, the champion of human rights, democracy and freedom?” the pope asked on Friday. “What has happened to you, Europe, the mother of peoples and nations, the mother of great men and women who upheld, and even sacrificed their lives for, the dignity of their brothers and sisters?” | “What has happened to you, the Europe of humanism, the champion of human rights, democracy and freedom?” the pope asked on Friday. “What has happened to you, Europe, the mother of peoples and nations, the mother of great men and women who upheld, and even sacrificed their lives for, the dignity of their brothers and sisters?” |
| Those questions have become more pressing in recent years as the vision of political and economic unity has clashed with the realities of economic downturn, threats of terrorism, and the largest movement of migrants since World War II on an unprepared Continent. Populist politics, often tinged with an anti-European message, is also wearing down the desire of many European leaders to arrive at a shared response to these pressing issues. | Those questions have become more pressing in recent years as the vision of political and economic unity has clashed with the realities of economic downturn, threats of terrorism, and the largest movement of migrants since World War II on an unprepared Continent. Populist politics, often tinged with an anti-European message, is also wearing down the desire of many European leaders to arrive at a shared response to these pressing issues. |
| Faced with the challenges of the present, the pope challenged Europe’s leaders to revive the “de facto solidarity and concrete generosity that followed the Second World War,” and to recognize that “the identity of Europe is, and always has been, a dynamic and multicultural identity” that today requires “a profound cultural integration.” | Faced with the challenges of the present, the pope challenged Europe’s leaders to revive the “de facto solidarity and concrete generosity that followed the Second World War,” and to recognize that “the identity of Europe is, and always has been, a dynamic and multicultural identity” that today requires “a profound cultural integration.” |
| “The soul of Europe is, in fact, greater than the present borders of the Union and is called to become a model of new syntheses and of dialogue,” the pope told the audience, which included leaders of the European Union’s principal institutions and its central bank, as well as elected officials including Prime Minister Matteo Renzi of Italy and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. | “The soul of Europe is, in fact, greater than the present borders of the Union and is called to become a model of new syntheses and of dialogue,” the pope told the audience, which included leaders of the European Union’s principal institutions and its central bank, as well as elected officials including Prime Minister Matteo Renzi of Italy and Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany. |
| “The true face of Europe is seen not in confrontation, but in the richness of its various cultures and the beauty of its commitment to openness,” he said. | “The true face of Europe is seen not in confrontation, but in the richness of its various cultures and the beauty of its commitment to openness,” he said. |
| He also called on leaders to rethink economic policies toward labor-based models and “more inclusive and equitable economic models, aimed not at serving the few, but at benefiting ordinary people and society as a whole,” and to develop better opportunities for Europe’s youth, who are stymied by record-high unemployment rates, and face pressures to emigrate. | |
| “We cannot look to the future without offering them the real possibility to be catalysts of change and transformation,” he said. “ We cannot envision Europe without letting them be participants and protagonists in this dream.” | “We cannot look to the future without offering them the real possibility to be catalysts of change and transformation,” he said. “ We cannot envision Europe without letting them be participants and protagonists in this dream.” |
| Francis urged leaders to refer to the Continent’s founding fathers, who “dared to change radically the models that had led only to violence and destruction. They dared to seek multilateral solutions to increasingly shared problems.” | Francis urged leaders to refer to the Continent’s founding fathers, who “dared to change radically the models that had led only to violence and destruction. They dared to seek multilateral solutions to increasingly shared problems.” |
| Finally, the pope shared his dream for Europe: “a Europe that cares for children, that offers fraternal help to the poor and those newcomers seeking acceptance because they have lost everything and need shelter.” | Finally, the pope shared his dream for Europe: “a Europe that cares for children, that offers fraternal help to the poor and those newcomers seeking acceptance because they have lost everything and need shelter.” |
| In his Europe, “being a migrant is not a crime but a summons to greater commitment on behalf of the dignity of every human being”; young people live a “simple life undefiled by the insatiable needs of consumerism”; and “getting married and having children is a responsibility and a great joy, not a problem due to the lack of stable employment.” | |
| “I dream of a Europe that promotes and protects the rights of everyone, without neglecting its duties towards all,” he said. “I dream of a Europe of which it will not be said that its commitment to human rights was its last utopia.” | “I dream of a Europe that promotes and protects the rights of everyone, without neglecting its duties towards all,” he said. “I dream of a Europe of which it will not be said that its commitment to human rights was its last utopia.” |