Inter-religious dialogue, "open and respectful" of life, freedom of conscience and religion, "can bring good seeds which in turn become shoots of friendship and cooperation in many fields, and especially in service to the poor, the young, the elderly, in the reception of migrants, attention to those who are excluded”.
This was Francis message today at a general audience dedicated to the 50th anniversary of the conciliar declaration Nostra Aetate on non-Christian religions, remembered primarily for promoting a new vision of the "very particular" relationship between the Catholic Church and Judaism , testified today by the presence of a delegation of the World Jewish Congress. To the 20 thousand people in St. Peter's Square, including representatives of many religions in the world, the Pope then spoke of the dialogue between religions by stating that believers - "who are all brothers and sisters- can give the world" real answers "on issues such as peace, hunger, environmental crisis, corruption and the crisis of the family, the economy, finance. And noting that "the dialogue must be open and respectful, and then it proves fruitful. Mutual respect is the condition and, at the same time, the end goal of inter-religious dialogue: respect for the right of others to life, physical integrity, fundamental freedoms, namely freedom of conscience, of thought, of expression and of religion". "The message of the Declaration Nostra Aetate is ever valid. I would recall briefly a few points: - The growing interdependence of peoples (cf. n. 1); - The human search for meaning of life, suffering, death, questions that always accompany our path (cf. n. 1); - The common origin and common destiny of humanity (cf. n. 1); - The oneness of the human family (cf. n. 1); - Religions as a search for God or the Absolute, within the various ethnic groups and cultures (cf. n. 1); - The benevolent gaze of the Church and attentive on religions: she rejects nothing in them which is beautiful and true - The Church also regards the believers of all religions with esteem, appreciating their spiritual and moral commitment - The Church, open to dialogue with all, is at once faithful to the truths she believes, beginning with the salvation offered to all has its origin in Jesus, the only Savior, and that the Holy Spirit is at work as a source of peace and love.
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