A reflection on the implications of the crucial relationship between God and society today, in view of the international event to be held in Rome on 10-12 December and organised by the Committee for the Cultural Project of the Italian Bishops’ Conference.
 In his letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church (10 March 2009), Benedict XVI writes: “In our days, when in vast areas of the world the faith is in danger of dying out like a flame which no longer has fuel, the overriding priority is to make God present in this world and to show men and women the way to God. Not just any god, but the God who spoke on Sinai; to that God whose face we recognize in a love which presses "to the end" (cf. Jn 13:1) - in Jesus Christ, crucified and risen. The real problem at this moment of our history is that God is disappearing from the human horizon, and, with the dimming of the light which comes from God, humanity is losing its bearings, with increasingly evident destructive effects.” I have chosen to begin with this long quotation because it clarifies, with great precision and effectiveness, the reasons why the Committee for the Cultural Project of the Italian Bishops’ Conference felt the need to hold an international event totally dedicated to the subject of God (God today. With him or without him nothing is the same, Rome, 10-12 December 2009). The sense and purpose of this Event is therefore very clearly illustrated.