Polish bishops have called for setting up a joint committee to decide how to honour the memory of the victims of the Smolensk air disaster on April 10.

The appeal is addressed to the President, the Speakers of both houses of the National Assembly, the Prime Minister, the Mayor of Warsaw and the leaders of parliamentary parties.

In a communiqué published after a meeting in the Black Madonna shrine of Czestochowa, the bishops expressed the view that in the political conflict, in which the cross became a kind of ‘hostage’, the problem of the cross itself should be separated from the just request to honour the memory of all the victims of the tragedy with a memorial of a dignified character.

The communique says that the cross, which for Christians is a sign of faith worthy of the highest reverence and respect, must never divide people or be a tool used to achieve human goals, no matter how noble they are.

Archbishop Jozef Michalik told journalists that the current conflict is about the manner and form of commemorating the tragic plane crash. ‘We, as bishops, are not empowered to resolve it. It is an issue that has to be solved by those who are directly involved in honouring the victims’, he said.

The bishops’ stand was criticized by the government spokesman Paweł Graś. He said that it is regrettable and sad that the Church failed to demonstrate a responsible position, adding that the cross that stands in front of the presidential palace is a problem from which the bishops cannot ran away. “It is a pity that the Church did not seize the opportunity to rebuild its position,” the government spokesman said.

An ad-hoc wooden cross was placed outside the presidential palace in the days of mourning after the plane crash, and has since become the subject of a heated political debate. (mk)

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