As leaders from 10 religious traditions gathered at an interfaith forum hosted in Saudi Arabia, Pope Francis’ latest document on human fraternity had a central place in the discussions. Source: Crux.
“We must put human dignity back at the centre and on that pillar build the alternative social structures we need,” said Miguel Ángel Moratinos, High Representative for the United Nations Alliance of Civilisations, quoting from Fratelli Tutti, the papal encyclical released on October 4.
His words came during a high-level summit called the G20 Interfaith Forum ahead of the meeting of the G20 leaders in Riyadh next month, where government leaders from 19 countries and the European Union will gather to discuss international economic cooperation.
The October 13-17 forum is being held online due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The critical situation of the world – due to COVID-19, the impact of the lockdown on mental health and economies, the rising poverty, unemployment and inequality, are among the things listed by several panellists – implores religious leaders to come together, and this was the core message of the opening session.
Cardinal Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot, president of the Vatican’s Council for Interreligious Dialogue, said humanity was going through a “very dark moment”. He said adequate solutions are needed to address the problems of “our existential life,” with the human family coming together in a spirit of friendship, proposing answers to common problems.
Religious leaders in particular, he said, need to be a “contagion of hope”.
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G20 Interfaith Forum urges putting ‘human dignity back at the center’ of global debate (By Inés San Martín, Crux)
