Jag hittade till slut nyheter om detta - men sidan är nere nu p.g.a. tekniska problem - så jag fick bara tag på en "cache"-bild - och eftersom sidan inte går att nå klistrar jag in hela texten.

Det ser ut att bli en riktigt "mysig" konferens som inte riskerar att uppröra någon av de särskilt inbjudna deltagarna (ur idel traditionella grupperingar).

D.v.s. om nu inte den helige Ande griper in och inspirerar de än så länge hemliga talarna till att säga något som inte redan står skrivet i granit.... Överraskningar har ju givits förr - t.o.m. i Vatikanen.

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Vatican Prepares World Congress on Woman

Women from the world over will gather in Rome next year to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Pope John Paul II's apostolic letter on the dignity of women.

The congress, organized by the Pontifical Council for the Laity, will be titled "Woman and Man, the Fullness of What Is Human," and will take place Feb. 7-9.

Rocío Figueroa, organizer of the event and the director of the pontifical council's section on women, told ZENIT that the congress will gather a wide array of women to reflect on the letter "Mulieris Dignitatem," published Aug. 15, 1988.

"We want women to come from all the five continents," she said. "There will be a delegate from each episcopal conference and there will be representatives and leaders of Catholic associations that promote the woman in the Church and various movements and new communities."

There will also be academic women who reflect on the theme of the woman as theologians, philosophers and psychologists."

Figueroa said that participation in the congress is by invitation only, and that about 250 people will be invited.

Speakers for the congress have not yet been announced, but Figueroa said that topics for the various talks will focus on themes such as John Paul II's letter on women, Mary and the women of the Gospel, the Christian vision of women and feminine anthropology.

Culture specific

The conference will also address the situation of women in various situations and cultures. Talks will be given on promoting the dignity of women in Asia, the role of women in faith education in Africa, the dignity of women in a technological and consumerist society such as the United States, and the integral formation of women in Latin America.

Figueroa explained, "One of the objectives will be to study in-depth the new cultural paradigms such as the reduction of women to objects of consumption, the ideology of gender and the rejection of motherhood and family, as well as women in the world of work."

She added that the celebration of the letter on the dignity of woman is to mark a milestone in the Church: "It is the first time that a pontifical document speaks specifically on the theme of the woman."

Figueroa pointed out to ZENIT that Benedict XVI has also expressed on several occasions the appreciation that the Church has for the contribution of the woman: "It is enough to cite the catechesis of the general audience of Feb. 14, 2007, dedicated precisely to the woman and her ecclesial responsibility from the first Christian communities until today."

Källa: Zenit.org (SEPT. 24, 2007)