PTI - United Nations, April 18.
Pope Benedict XVI today supported keeping religions and politics separate
and strongly advocated inclusion of religious freedom among basic human
rights that should be ensured to people across the globe. In his maiden
address to the 192-member General Assembly, the pontiff avoided reference to
political issues but concentrated on the need for inter-faith dialogue and
human rights based on ethical values. The Pope called for keeping religions
and politics separate and expressed his firm belief that it would ensue
great benefit to individual and communities. He told the packed assembly
that the task of inter-religious dialogue should be to propose a vision of
faith in terms of complete respect for truth, coexistence, human rights and
reconciliation. Warning against vision of faith based on intolerance,
discrimination and conflict, the pope said the dialogue should be recognised
as a means by which various components of society can articulate their point
of view and build consensus around "truth concerning particular values or
goals" "It pertains to the nature of religions, freely practiced , that can
automatically conduct a dialogue of thought and life," the pontiff said. The
pope asserted that human rights must include the right to religious
freedom. "It is inconceivable that the believers should suppress a "part of
themselves" their faith to be active citizens. The rights associated with
religion are all the more in need for protection if they are considered to
clash with a prevailing security ideology or with majority religious
positions of an exclusive nature, " he told the Assembly. The Pope said
human rights must be respected as an expression of justice and not merely
because they are enforceable through the will of legislators. "Experience
shows that legality often prevails over justice when insistence upon rights
make them appear as the exclusive result of legislative enactiments or
normative decisions," he added.
In tackling the theme of rights, he said, discernment capacity to
distinguish good from evil is important. "Discernment, then, shows that
entrusting exclusively to individual States, with their laws and
institutions, the final responsibility to meet the aspiration of persons,
communities and peoples, can sometimes have consequences that exclude the
possibility of social order respectful of the dignity and rights of
persons," he said.
But a vision of life firmly anchored on the religious dimension can help to
achieve the dignity and rights of persons since recognition of the
transcedent value of every man and woman favours conversion of heart, which
then leads to commitment to reisit violence, terrorism and war and to
promote justice and peace, he added.
"This also provides for proper context from inter-religious dialogue that
the United Nations is called to support, just as it supports dialogue in
other areas of human activity," he told the assembly.
The Pope ended his address with greetings "Peace and Prosperity with God's
help" in five United Nations languages English, Russian, Chinese, Arabic and
French.
COMMENTS
The headline "Keep Religion and Politics separate" , this coming from the
Pope himself is something that makes me rejoice. This is what I, personally
and through the political Party that I have helped found, have been
propagating for a long long time, because to me, the mix of these two
entities has been the ultimate cause of all evil which we experience in the
world, in India in particular, and in Goa to most extent. Not to go far, the
Babri Masjid demolition case has been the most major mixing of Religion
with Politics and we have seen to what extent the Indian nation has suffered
from the consequences. Why did this 'Secular in Principle' Nation allow
this - is a million dollar question. In Goa, dirty politics has flourished
by keeping itself in close proximity to religion and exploiting it. The
Maharashtrawadi Gomantak Party ruled for 17 years through this act of
fooling the majority people of Goa. The Church in Goa is seen predominantly
tilted towards the Congress Party, irrespective of whether the congressmen
in power have been the paragons of virtue or the henchmen of the Devil
himself. The bogey of BJP's communal ideology ( which is nothing but the
ideology to win elections and propel its leaders into powerful positions)
has sealed this equation further to the advantage of the sly congressmen to
whom either moral values or communality wouldn't matter in the least bit
provided that they got what they wanted --- POWER -- to loot and plunder.
And the Church for its part, by trying to buy protection from the supposed
communal devil has sold its soul to these congress rogues who have never
flinched being on either side provided that they always remained on the
ruling side. Our Chief Minister Mr. Digamber Kamat is an exclusive example
of being such a rogue. On the pretext that he was getting suffocated in the
BJP's camp, he came back into the congress camp which he had deserted
earlier, not being satisfied with being only the Deputy CM but wanting the
throne itself. And he got it. What happened to the communal ideology that
Digamber Kamat was a part of for over 10 years? It vanished into thin air
and he became secular?
I am writing this in the hope that the Church in Goa will open its eyes wide
and pay heed to the bold message of the Pontiff and go all out for the
'moral values' and not fall for the bogey of communalism which is just a
mirage for the corrupt congressmen so that they may have their cake and eat
it too. In fact, the Church, if it is sincere to itself, will have to find
a new and neutral position to stand on based on 'ethics' , 'moral values'
and the whole load of 'self-sacrifice' which it preaches about day in and
day out and not to be found medling in matters of wrong political science
and be projected as hypocritical.
floriano
goasuraj
