Pilgrims of truth, pilgrims of peace
Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Assisi on Thursday 27th of October together with 300 delegates of other religions and of no religions at all , for a day long visit in commemoration of that first meeting in this hill top Umbrian town . One called for a quarter of a century ago by his predecessor to the See of Peter, Blessed John Paul II. Philippa Hitchen reports from the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli. From the early hours of the morning, pilgrims began gathering down at the Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli, some taking their places inside around the tiny chapel or Porziuncola where Saint Francis is buried, others waiting patiently outside for the Pope and his guests to arrive on the train from Rome. Over 300 of them, men and women of faith from countries around the world, plus for the first time a small delegation of non believers, invited to join this shared pilgrimage on the difficult path towards truth and peace in our troubled world.
Cheering broke out as the Pope greeted them one by one, before making his way up to the raised white stage where leaders of the largest Churches and faith communities were seated. Introducing the event, the President of the Vatican's Justice and Peace Council, Cardinal Peter Turkson said “We come to bear witness to the great power of religion for good, to renew a common commitment to building peace, reconciling those in conflict and bringing man back into harmony with creation. Then one by one, these elders of their respective communities stood up to declare their own commitment to the search for greater tolerance, respect and peace amongst peoples and nations.
Among them the Orthodox leader, Patriarch Bartholomew 1st of Constantinople, who spoke in French of the need for metamorphosis, transformation, conversion at the heart of all genuine dialogue. As religious leaders, he said, we must show through our example that we do not seek to live “one against the other, but each one together with the other in the common search for truth and peace” Referring to the dramatic events of the Arab spring, he said the place of religion in the midst of these upheavals remains ambiguous and he expressed the concern of all Christian leaders for the marginalisation of their Christian communities throughout the Middle East.
Echoing those concerns, was the secretary general of the World council of Churches, Dr Olav Fykse Tveit who highlighted the vital role of young people leading the push for democracy and peace across the Arab world. He spoke of the young St Francis, motivated by “passion and a radical daring for peace” who met with the Sultan in Egypt to share their experiences of faith - like many Crusaders, he said, Francis came to convert the other but instead “he became changed, converted himself.”
The head of the Anglican Communion, Archbishop Rowan Williams noted that no one religious community can claim to have all the resources necessary to confront the huge challenges of today. We are not here in Assisi, he said to affirm a minimum common ground of belief, but rather to speak words of wisdom, from the depths of our distinctive religious traditions to a world still obsessed with fear and suspicion, still in love with the idea of security based on defensive hostility, still capable of tolerating or ignoring massive loss of life among the poorest through war and disease.
The head of the Armenian church in France, Archbishop Norvan Zakarian, spoke of the difficult path towards justice and reconciliation, stressing the need for truth about crimes committed during armed conflicts and particularly he said during genocide, the most serious crime of them all.
Interspersed by the haunting strains of a violin played by a Franciscan friar, the other Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and indigenous leaders came forward to speak, the latter punctuating his words with traditional singing and the use of a small percussion instrument he had brought from Africa for this occasion.
One of the delegation of non believers, Professor Julia Kristeva also came forward to speak of the particular role of women and the need to re-evaluate the contribution of humanism to the search for justice and peace in the world.
Finally Pope Benedict spoke of the huge changes that have taken place since the first such interfaith meeting in Assisi in 1986. Though the world is no longer divided between East and West, he said, the world of freedom has proved to be largely directionless, while new forms of violence and discord continue to threaten us today.The first of those, he said is terrorism, often religiously motivated, which undermines all previously recognised international norms regarding the protection of civilians in situations of conflict....this, the Pope stressed is the antithesis of true religion and contributes to its destruction. He acknowledged that Christians throughout the course of history have also abused of their faith to use violence against others and he said the task of all Christians today is to purify our religion so that it can truly serve as an instrument of God's peace.
The other type of violence, the Pope said, is the denial of God, resulting in the loss of humanity and a cruelty which knows no bounds. He mentioned the concentration camps but also the devastation of human lives caused by the drug trade as examples of what happens when God is absent and the worship of mammon, possessions and power become a counter-religion.
Finally Pope Benedict spoke of the growing world of agnosticism, of people who do not have the gift of faith yet whose searching for truth should challenge all believers not to consider God as their own property. For her part, the Pope said, the Catholic Church will not let up in her fight against violence, instead, like all those gathered here in Assisi, we must be animated by that common desire to be " pilgrims of truth, pilgrims of peace."
