ARCHBISHOP CORDES ATTENDS WORKING MEETING IN MOSCOW

VATICAN CITY, FEB 1, 1997 (VIS) - Archbishop Paul Joseph Cordes, president of the Pontifical Council "Cor Unum," is currently participating in a working meeting in Moscow, Russia, with Caritas and Catholic groups committed to the social-charitable sphere, according to a communique made public today.

Archbishop Cordes was invited by Archbishop Tadeusz Kondrusiewicz, apostolic administrator for European Russia. "Besides gaining direct knowledge about the local situation and the activities of the different ecclesial organizations at the service of the poorest, the mission of the president of 'Cor Unum' seeks to transmit the encouragement of the Holy See to the Catholic community, always attentive to the neediest: the marginalized, the handicapped, the elderly and children."

"It will also be a propitious occasion," concludes the communique, "to increase profitable collaboration with the charity structures of the Orthodox Church, in a spirit of healthy ecumenism capable of offering a joint witness of the love of Christ for the poor and suffering.
OP/CHARITY/MOSCOW:CORDES:KONDRUSIEWICZ VIS 970203 (170)