Pope Greets Israeli Religious Council Members

(November 10, 2011) Pope Benedict XVI stressed on the importance of Justice, together with truth, love and freedom, as a fundamental requirement for lasting and secure peace in the world. He added that all of us are called to commit ourselves anew to the promotion of greater justice and dignity, in order to enrich our world and to give it a fully human dimension. The Pope said this on Thursday in Rome during his address to the Members of the Israeli Religious Council, representing the religious communities present in the Holy Land. He added that in our troubled times, dialogue between different religions is becoming ever more important in the generation of an atmosphere of mutual understanding and respect that can lead to friendship and solid trust in each other. Referring to the October Peace Meeting in Assisi, Pope Benedict said that today we find ourselves confronted by two kinds of violence: on the one hand, the use of violence in the name of religion and, on the other, the violence that is the consequence of the denial of God which often characterises life in modern society. In this situation, as religious leaders our duty is to reaffirm that the rightly lived relationship of man to God is a force for peace. Further the Pontiff said that we share a grave responsibility to educate the members of our respective religious communities, with a view to nurturing a deeper understanding of each other and developing openness towards cooperation with people of religious traditions other than our own. The Pope called on the Members of the Council to pray with confidence for the peace of the Holy Land, to God who himself is our peace and consolation.