Pope: Encounter, mutual dialogue
needed in a challenging world
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| Pope Francis addresses Christian leaders and Leaders of other Religions (Vatican Media) |
Pope Francis meets Christian Leaders and Leaders of Other
Religions at Bangkok’s, Chulalongkorn University, telling them co-operation and
mutual respect is needed more than ever in a world filled with complex
challenges.
By Lydia O'Kane
In 1897, Thailand’s King Chulalongkorn, (Rama V) visited
Rome and met Pope Leo XIII, the first time that a non-Christian Head of State
was received in the Vatican.
King Chulalongkorn’s vision, according to the University’s
incumbent President, was to “provide higher education for students from all
walks of life regardless of their gender, social status, ethnic or economic
background, or religious faith”, and on that premise the university that bears
his name was founded in 1917.
Addressing Christian Leaders and Leaders of Other Religions
at Chulalongkorn University on Friday, Pope Francis said that this
significant encounter between the monarch and Pope Leo challenges us, in our
own time, “to pursue the path of dialogue and mutual understanding.”
We need to do it, he added, “in a spirit of fraternal
solidarity that can help end the many present-day forms of slavery, especially
the scourge of human trafficking.”
Encounter and mutual dialogue
Pope Francis said, in a world today that faces complex
challenges “such as economic and financial globalization and the tragic
persistence of civil conflicts resulting in movements of migration, refugees,
famine and war”, there is all the more need for mutual respect, esteem and
cooperation between religions.
These challenges, the Pope pointed out, “remind us that no
region or sector of the human family can look to itself or its future in
isolation from or immune to others.” He continued by saying that, “now
is the time to be bold and envision the logic of encounter and mutual dialogue
as the path, common cooperation as the code of conduct, and reciprocal
knowledge as a method and standard.”
Heeding the cry of the poor
Speaking to those present, the Pontiff said, “all of us are
called not only to heed the voice of the poor in our midst: the
disenfranchised, the downtrodden, the indigenous peoples and religious
minorities, but also to be unafraid to create opportunities”, while respecting
the rights of conscience and religious freedom.
Imparting wisdom to new generations
During his address, the Pope noted in particular the “esteem
and concern given to the elderly in Thailand. He said that, “this ensures
that you preserve the roots necessary so that your people do not lose their
bearings by following certain slogans that end up emptying and mortgaging the
soul of new generations.”
Pope Francis expressed the hope that young people would
continue to be assisted in discovering the cultural heritage of the society in
which they live and the richness of its past.
This entire approach, the Pope underlined, “demands the
involvement of educational institutions like this university.” Research and
knowledge, he said, “can help to open new paths for reducing human inequality,
strengthening social justice, upholding human dignity, seeking means for the
peaceful resolution of conflicts, and preserving the life-giving resources of
our earth.”
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