Cyril and Methodius

Today is the feast of Cyril and Methodius, brothers and co-Patrons of Europe. The Eastern Church considers them to be 'equal to the apostles' - and with good reason. Their evangelising efforts changed and shaped the culture and civilisation of the time. The two brother-saints also remind us that Europe's history is best understood not only as a collection of national narratives but also as great strides in art, architecture, literature, philosophy and language which were infused and shaped by the Christian message.

Now we live in a perverse situation where we allow the culture of the time to shape our evangelising efforts, thus impoverishing both our culture and our life of faith.

Pope Benedict XVI had much to say about this: "Cyril and Methodius are in fact a classic example of what today is meant by the term 'inculturation': every people must integrate the message revealed into its own culture and express its saving truth in its own language. This implies a very demanding effort of 'translation' because it requires the identification of the appropriate words to present anew, without distortion, the riches of the revealed word. The two holy Brothers have left us a most important testimony of this, to which the Church also looks today in order to draw from it inspiration and guidelines."

Other reading: John Paul II and the European Ideal.