The President of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant People, Archbishop
Antonio Maria Veglio, delivered an address today to the participants in an international
Conference on dialogue among Muslims, Christians and Jews.
The conference opened
Wednesday in Gödöllö, Hungary, near the capital, Budapest, and is being promoted in
the context of Hungary’s turn in the Presidency of the European Union.
Among
those participating are Ambassadors, government ministers and representatives of the
different religious traditions, including the President of the Council of European
Bishops’ Conferences, Cardinal Peter Erdö of Esztergom-Budapest.
The President
of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerants, Archbishop Antonio Maria Vegliò
addressed the participants on Thursday, the second day of the conference, presenting
a reflection on the religious and social impact of migration in the context of cultural
diversity.
Archbishop Vegliò discussed the role of religion and its place in
the reception of migrants, intercultural dialogue and intercultural education, recalling
Pope Benedict XVI’s recent appeal for courageous and innovative faithfulness, capable
of bringing together both a clear and well-formed sense of identity and authentic
openness to otherness, as essential to and necessary for peaceful and fruitful coexistence
in multicultural societies.