by Leela Ramdeen, Chair of the Catholic Commission for Social Justice
Today I continue to share some extracts from Pope Benedict XVI’s Peace Message for 2011: “Religious Freedom, the Path to Peace”.
At the press conference when the Peace Message was released, Cardinal Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace said: “Religious freedom does not imply that all religions are equal. Nor is it a reason for religious relativism or indifferentism. Religious freedom is compatible with defence of one’s religious identity against relativism, syncretism and fundamentalism, which are all abused forms of religious freedom.”
The Pope states: “With due respect for the positive secularity of state institutions, the public dimension of religion must always be acknowledged. A healthy dialogue between civil and religious institutions is fundamental for the integral development of the human person and social harmony…
“In a globalised world marked by increasingly multi-ethnic and multi-religious societies, the great religions can serve as an important factor of unity and peace for the human family. On the basis of their religious convictions and their reasoned pursuit of the common good, their followers are called to give responsible expression to their commitment within a context of religious freedom. Amid the variety of religious cultures, there is a need to value those elements which foster civil coexistence, while rejecting whatever is contrary to the dignity of men and women.
“Christians, for their part, are spurred by their faith in God, the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, to live as brothers and sisters who encounter one another in the Church and work together in building a world where individuals and peoples shall not hurt or destroy…
“For the Church, dialogue between the followers of the different religions represents an important means of cooperating with all religious communities for the common good. The Church herself rejects nothing of what is true and holy in the various religions…
“The Church… ‘proclaims, and is in duty bound to proclaim without fail, Christ who is the way, the truth and the life (Jn 14:6); in Christ, in whom God reconciled all things to himself, people find the fullness of the religious life’. Yet this in no way excludes dialogue and the common pursuit of truth in different areas of life…”
The Pope notes that 2011 marks the 25th anniversary of the World Day of Prayer for Peace convened by Pope John Paul II in Assisi in 1986.
He urges governmental and social institutions to engage in respectful dialogue with religious groups, which can make important contributions toward the common good. “Politics and diplomacy should look to the moral and spiritual patrimony offered by the great religions of the world in order to acknowledge and affirm universal truths, principles and values which cannot be denied without denying the dignity of the human person.”
He urges world leaders to “act promptly to end every injustice” against Christians in Asia, Africa and the Middle East and especially in the Holy Land and warns against: “…more sophisticated forms of hostility to religion which, in Western countries, occasionally find expression in a denial of history and the rejection of religious symbols which reflect the identity and the culture of the majority of citizens.” Such hostility often fosters “hatred and prejudice; they are inconsistent with a serene and balanced vision of pluralism and the secularity of institutions…”
He assures Christians facing violence and discrimination of his prayers and asks them to renew their commitment to forgiveness and reconciliation.
He says: “The world needs God. It needs universal, shared ethical and spiritual values, and religion can offer a precious contribution to their pursuit, for the building of a just and peaceful social order at the national and international levels…Religious freedom is an authentic weapon of peace, with an historical and prophetic mission. Peace brings to full fruition the deepest qualities and potentials of the human person, the qualities which can change the world and make it better.”
He invites “all those who wish to be peacemakers, especially the young, to heed the voice speaking within their hearts and thus to find in God the stable point of reference for attaining authentic freedom, the inexhaustible force which can give the world a new direction and spirit, and overcome the mistakes of the past.” I urge you to read the full message.
