Pope to G20: world attention is focused on you and expects solutions
Pope Benedict XVI has written a letter to South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, ahead
of the opening of the Group of twenty (G20) summit in Seoul. In the letter the Pope
tells the leaders of the world’s twenty major economies, that at this time of crisis,
“the world's attention focuses on you and it expects that appropriate solutions will
be adopted to overcome the crisis, with common agreements which will not favor some
countries at the expense of others”.
The Pope adds “the G20 will respond to
the expectations placed in it and grant real success to future generations, if taking
into consideration the various and sometimes contrasting problems afflicting the peoples
of the earth, it is able to set out the characteristics of the universal common good
and demonstrate its willingness to cooperate in order to attain it”.
Read the
text in full: To His Excellency Mr. Lee Myung-bak President of the Republic of
Korea Mr. President, The meeting about to take place in Seoul of Heads of States
and Government of the world's twenty-two leading economies together with the Secretary-General
of the United Nations Organization, the Presidency of the European Union and some
regional Organizations, as well as the leaders of various specialized Agencies, is
not only of global importance but also clearly expresses the significance and responsibility
which Asia has acquired on the international scene at the beginning of the 21st century.
The Korean Presidency of the Summit is a recognition of the significant level of economic
development attained by your country, which is the first among those not belonging
to the G8 to host the G20 and guide its decision in the world after the crisis. The
Summit seeks solutions to quite complex questions, on which the future of upcoming
generations depends and which therefore require the cooperation of the entire international
community, based on the acknowledgement — which is shared and agreed by all peoples
— of the primary and central value of human dignity, the final objective of the choices
themselves. The Catholic Church, in accordance with her specific nature, regards
herself as involved and shares the concerns of the leaders who will take part in the
Seoul Summit. I therefore encourage you to tackle the numerous serious problems facing
you — and which, in a sense, face every human person today — bearing in mind the deeper
reasons for the economic and financial crisis and giving due consideration to the
consequences of the measures adopted to overcome the crisis itself, and to seek lasting,
sustainable and just solutions. In doing so, it is my hope that there will be a keen
awareness that the solutions adopted, as such, will work only if, in the final analysis,
they are aimed at reaching the same goal: the authentic and integral development of
man. The world's attention focuses on you and it expects that appropriate solutions
will be adopted to overcome the crisis, with common agreements which will not favor
some countries at the expense of others. History, furthermore, reminds us that, no
matter how difficult it is to reconcile the different socio-cultural, economic and
political identities coexisting today, these solutions, to be effective, must be applied
through combined action which, above all, respects the nature of man. It is decisive
for the very future of humanity to show the world and history that today, thanks also
to this crisis, man has matured to the point of being able to recognize that civilizations
and cultures, like economic, social and political systems, can and must converge in
a shared vision of human dignity, which respects the laws and requirements placed
in it by God the Creator. The G20 will respond to the expectations placed in it and
grant real success to future generations, if taking into consideration the various
and sometimes contrasting problems afflicting the peoples of the earth, it is able
to set out the characteristics of the universal common good and demonstrate its willingness
to cooperate in order to attain it. With these sentiments I invoke God's blessings
on all taking part in the Seoul Summit and I avail myself of the occasion to renew
to Your Excellency the assurance of my highest consideration. From the Vatican,
8 November 2010Benedictus pp XVI