2012-10-14 13:38:05

Istanbul World Forum: Vatican Secretary speaks on justice and religion


The Secretary of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Fr. Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot addressed participants on the second and last day of the Istanbul World Forum (October 13-14) whose theme is “Justice and the Construction of a New Global Order.” Below is the text of his discourse on “Justice and Religion:”


Excellencies,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. I am honoured to be here today to take part in this panel on “Religion and Peace”. As Pope John Paul II said, there can be “No peace without justice, no justice without forgiveness” (World Day of Peace, 1 January 2002). Justice and peace seek the good of one and all, and for this reason they demand order and truth. When one is threatened, both falter; when justice is offended, peace is also placed in jeopardy. The root-causes of many of the problems affecting the peaceful co-existence and development of all today, as we are aware of, are inequality and injustice. But where do inequality and injustice come from? Let us reflect on the role of religion as the catalyst and basis for justice and the promoter of an equality which is this new ‘Global Order’ we are discussing. There is a profound relationship between social justice and religion, something which is close to the hearts of all of us, since we all belong to one human family and as members of this family, we are in an inescapable relationship with one another, and called to live in Peace.

2. The focus of this panel is to discuss how religious traditions can be effective instruments in resolving crisis and building a shared peaceful future. This suggests that for the well-being and well-ordering of society, religion has a role to play, although it would be wrong to limit religion to a mere social role. Unfortunately, the role of religion in modem society is often misunderstood, unappreciated and even criticised as a source of the problems and conflicts that ill modem society. In his address to representatives of British Society, during his visit to Great Britain in 2010, Pope Benedict XVI noted that "distorted forms of religion, such as sectarianism and fundamentalism" can create social problems. Religion, properly understood and properly appreciated, according to Pope Benedict, has an important role to play in political debate which is "to help purify and shed light upon the application of reason to the discovery of objective moral principles". Therefore, Pope Benedict concluded, "Religion ... is not a problem ... but a vital contributor to the national conversation." (Meeting with the Representatives of British Society, Including the Diplomatic Corps, Politicians, Academics and Business Leaders, 17 September 2010)

3. Religion, therefore, has a role in contributing to the national conversation of any given society. That conversation needs to engage with all the complexities that societies face in the modem world. Concepts such as 'Justice' and 'Social Justice' are an integral part of that conversation. Thus, we ask ourselves, what is the contribution of Religion to the national conversation about 'Justice' and 'Social Justice'? Justice is a divine attribute, and religious teaching certainly contributes to the reflection on the right ordering of relationships, in other words, social justice. Catholic tradition, however, maintains that Justice is accessible by means of human reason, to all men and women of goodwill, both religious and nonreligious. Pope Benedict XVI has spoken about the complementary relationship between religion and reason: as religion may need to be tempered by the light of reason there are times that reason needs to be purified and corrected by religion.

4. While both believer and non-believer can subscribe to the innate dignity of the human person, and that such dignity is the reason for the inalienable rights of each individual, the protection of which is the objective of justice, religious belief considers those rights to be 'God given' and of 'divine origin' while the nonbeliever, without discounting the inalienability of human rights, chooses not to enquire further as to their origin. The inherent dignity of man means that he alone of the whole of creation can come to know and to love his Creator, the source of all life and happiness. It is the nature of the human being to strive to know his divine creator, to obtain happiness and life, and to do so he has been invested with God-given rights, natural in that they pertain to human nature, sacred and inviolable because of their divine origin.

5. These rights are antecedent and independent of the State, and the measure of the justice of the State is the extent by which it respects and vindicates these antecedent rights, for justice requires that all persons should be left in the free enjoyment of their rights. In its most simple and profound definition, justice is to give to another what is due to him. This of course gives rise to a question: who or what is responsible for the exercise of Justice, of ensuring that everyone is given or receives what is due to him? If we answer this question by saying that the State is the guarantor of inalienable rights and the grantor of positive rights, then, ultimately the legitimacy of the State is linked, even defined, by its ability and efficacy in the administration of Justice. When the State fails to administer Justice or, indeed, acts unjustly, it no longer has any moral authority or legitimacy. This implies that the State is subject to judgment, that it does not have absolute power, that it can, and indeed, must be held to account. Our question is, therefore, who or what can hold the State to account, to ensure that it acts justly? The question is not political but moral, although the answer will require political choices. As Pope Benedict XVI stated at Westminster Hall in September 2010, the central question at the heart of the Just Society is discovering the ethical foundation for political choices. If the State does not have the last word then it stands to reason that in a just society there must be another voice. (Meeting with the Representatives of British Society, Including the Diplomatic Corps, Politicians, Academics and Business Leaders, 17 September 2010)

6. Since the ultimate question is moral in nature then it follows that the hallmark of a civil and just society is the proper and due space afforded to Religion, which has a unique contribution in being the voice for the voiceless, a voice for the downtrodden, a voice for the oppressed, a voice for the persecuted, a prophetic voice calling all to act in peace and justice. Religion calls forth the conscience of society to act genuinely in favour of the common good. Religion, therefore, has a role in political debate, not in providing concrete political solutions, which lies outside the competence of Religion, but to recall to society the objective moral norms at the basis of justice and the just society. It is for an individual society to determine its own polity so that it can hold itself accountable in accordance with objective moral norms, in accordance with what is right and wrong, to determine the most appropriate instruments which can apply the measure of what ought to be done (justice) to what is being done. In determining that polity, society must allow Religion to have its proper voice in the Public Square.

7. When we speak of Religion in the Public Square, what we mean is that Religion cannot to be understood as a merely private matter. A free and just society is not threatened by allowing individuals to speak the convictions of their hearts in openness, sincerity and truth. Religious freedom is at the heart of the social project and is necessary for social justice. Religious freedom, therefore, is the fundamental basis for all other freedoms.

8. In its teaching on Religious Freedom, the Second Vatican Council taught that "the human person has a right to religious freedom," that this right means that everyone should be "immune from coercion on the part of individuals, social groups, and every human power" in acting on religious convictions, and that this right is exercised "in private or in public, alone or in association with others," (Declaration on Religious Freedom, Dignitatis Humanae, n.2). The Council, in delimitating the coercive power of the State, outlined some of the basic requirements of a just society. As we have already stated earlier, how a society recognises and upholds the basic tenets of Religious Freedom, is for it to decide, but it seems that the most basic requirement is to anchor these rights in basic constitutional rights and guarantees in the Rule of Law. Since religion is not a mere private matter of the individual, the freedom from coercion in matters of belief for the individual, also apply 'in public ... or in association with others' so that the State has no right to coerce or attempt to control the internal life of a religious community, to determine its creed, or to use it as a means of social control.

9. In 1979, Pope John Paul II, in addressing the General Assembly of the United Nations, described religious freedom as the first of human rights, and in his speech to the same body sixteen years later, in 1995, when he cited the role of religious freedom in helping bring about the collapse of European Communism, he made a profound statement about the power of the moral voice of religion to hold tyranny to account.

10. In continuity with the teaching of the Second Vatican Council and the teaching of Pope John Paul II, Pope Benedict XVI continues to champion religious freedom as the basis of all other freedoms, such as in Lebanon just last month. For the celebration of World Day of Peace on 1 January 2011, Pope Benedict XVI dedicated his annual message to the theme of religious freedom. It is worth recalling what he said there:

"Religious freedom expresses what is unique about the human person, for it allows us to direct our personal and social life to God, in whose light the identity, meaning and purpose of the person are fully understood. To deny or arbitrarily restrict this freedom is to foster a reductive vision of the human person; to eclipse the public role of religion is to create a society which is unjust, inasmuch as it fails to take account of the true nature of the human person; it is to stifle the growth of the authentic and lasting peace of the whole human family.

"For this reason, I implore all men and women of good will to renew their commitment to building a world where all are free to profess their religion or faith, and to express their love of God with all their heart, with all their soul and with all their mind (cf Mt 22:37)."

11. During his address to Political and Religious Leaders and Representatives of the World of Culture on 15 September last in Beirut, Pope Benedict XVI underlined the importance of religious freedom:

"It cannot be forgotten that religious freedom is the basic right on which many other rights depend. The freedom to profess and practise one's religion without danger to life and liberty must be possible to everyone. The loss or attenuation of this freedom deprives the person of his or her sacred right to a spiritually integrated life. What nowadays passes for tolerance does not eliminate cases of discrimination, and at times it even reinforces them. Without openness to transcendence, which makes it possible to find answers to their deepest questions about the meaning of life and morally upright conduct, men and women become incapable of acting justly and working for peace. Religious freedom has a social and political dimension which is indispensable for peace! It promotes a harmonious life for individuals and communities by a shared commitment to noble causes and by the pursuit of truth, which does not impose itself by violence but rather ‘by the force of its own truth’”.

12. Therefore, all of us are called to renew our commitment, with a sense of shared responsibility, for the promotion of greater social justice, through religious freedom, for a lasting and secure peace in the world. Echoing what Pope Benedict XVI said during his visit to Lebanon, may I conclude saying:

“Thoughts of peace, words of peace and acts of peace create an atmosphere of respect, honesty and cordiality, where faults and offences can be truthfully acknowledged as a means of advancing together on the path of reconciliation. May political and religious leaders reflect on this!” (Meeting with Members of the Government, Institutions of the Republic, the Diplomatic Corps, Religious Leaders and Representatives of the World of Culture, 15 September 2012, Lebanon).

Thank you.








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