Maronite Voice - Eparchy of Saint Maron of Brooklyn

Vatican Speaks Up on
Road Rage
Document Addresses
Facets of Ministry to
Travelers
Negligence on the road results annually in 1.2 million
deaths and 50 million injuries, a grim statistic that a
Vatican official noted as he presented the "Guidelines
for the Pastoral Care of the Road."
The document from the Pontifical Council for Migrants
andTravelers was released on June 19, 2007. Itsfour sections
cover issues ranging from road rage to ministering to
prostitutes. And the document includes a list of "ten
commandments" for drivers.
The document was published in English, French,
Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. The four sections are titled:
The pastoral care of road users, pastoral ministry for the
liberation of street women, the pastoral care of street
children, and the pastoral care of the homeless.
The guidelines seek to "create a coordination between all
the ecclesial realities of the world of the road and motivate
the episcopal conferences of the countries in which this
pastoral ministry does not exist, so that they organize one,"
Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council
for Migrants and Travelers, explained when presenting the
document.
The cardinal stressed a point from the document's first
section: that roads be "at the service of the human person, as
instruments to facilitate the life and integral development of
society."
The guidelines make a distinction between the use and
abuse of roadways and note the "particular psychology of the
driver" that, in a negative sense, can lead one to see as
"limitations the prohibitions that road signs designate." The
driver can also be led by a "dominating instinct," the
document explains.
Thus, Cardinal Martino said, "It is of fundamental
importance that the driver behaves responsibly and with selfcontrol
when he drives."
Moral Aspects
Cardinal Martino affirmed that driving also has a moral
aspect: "The capacity to exist together and enter into
relationships with others presupposed, on the part of
the driver, some specific qualities: self-control, prudence,
courtesy, an adequate spirit of service.
"We know that, as a consequence of transgressions and
the lack of discipline on the road, each year, on the roadways
of the world, 1.2 million people die, and 50 million are
wounded … a sad reality, and at the same time, a great
challenge both for society and for the Church."
In the face of this reality, the 74-year-old cardinal
encouraged both the Church and the state, each in their own
way, to "create a general and public awareness of that which
relates to security on the road and promote […] an adequate
education of drives, travelers and pedestrians."
The commandments
The document highlights four virtues to apply on the road
and offers the drivers' "ten commandments." The virtues are
charity, prudence, justice and hope.
The "Ten Commandments" for drivers, as listed in the
document, are:
1. You shall not kill.
2. The road shall be for you a means of communion
between people and not of mortal harm.
3. Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with
unforeseen events.
4. Be charitable and help your neighbor in need, especially
victims of accidents.
5. Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and
domination and an occasion of sin.
6. Charitably convince the young and not so young not to
drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.
7. Support the families of accident victims.
8. Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the
appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating
experience of forgiveness.
9. On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.
10. Feel responsible toward others.
Zenith.org, June 19, 2007
Pope Encourages Young People
To Prepare For World Youth Day
At the end of the general audience (On July 4, 2007), the
Pope addressed young people who are currently
preparing for the next World Youth Day (WYD), due
to be held in July 2008 in Sydney, Australia.
Speaking English, the Holy Father encouraged the young
people "to prepare well for this marvelous celebration of the
faith. ... Enter fully into the life of your parishes and
participate enthusiastically in diocesan events! In this way
you will be equipped spiritually to experience new depths of
understanding of all that we believe when we gather in
Sydney next July."
"World Youth Day is much more than an event," Pope
Benedict added. "It is a time of deep spiritual renewal, the
fruits of which benefit the whole of society."
"Some of you have friends with little real purpose in their
lives, perhaps caught up in a futile search for endless new
experiences. Bring them to World Youth Day too! In fact, I
have noticed that against the tide of secularism many young
people are rediscovering the satisfying quest for authentic
beauty, goodness and truth. Through your witness you help
them in their search for the Spirit of God."
The Holy Father concluded: "Be courageous in that
witness! Strive to spread Christ's guiding light, which gives
purpose to all life, making lasting joy and happiness possible
for everyone."
(VIS, July 4, 2007)
The Maronite Voice Volume III Issue No. VII Page 16 July 2007