“Always looking back prevents us from going forward. An election like the latest election of the Bundestag shows us that we live in a society that is plural, with many, often conflicting, opinions. Our mission should be to seek the good together”. Card. Reinhard Marx, President of the German Bishops, said this at St Michael’s Reception that took place at the political office of the Bishops in Berlin yesterday evening. Democracy needs both “our daily commitment” and “reasonableness” in order to stay alive, without which we cannot “find solutions in a complex society”. According to a statement released this morning by the bishops’ conference press office, the Cardinal referred to the migration issue, stating that “a law on immigration might be a solution, but not according to the rule that the strongest are taken in by Germany while the poor are left alone”. Speaking to about 600 guests, including President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Card. Marx also touched on environmental issues: “We must not lose sight of the potential losers when it comes to the ecological costs of globalization. The house of creation is this planet”. As regards discrimination and persecution, he explained: “The other should be recognised as he or she is. Everyone should be seen and accepted as the image of God. This vision of the world and of man can also apply to the reason which seeks the truth”.