(Vatican Radio) Interreligious dialogue is “an indispensable condition for peace” and “a duty for all believers”. That was Pope Francis’ reminder to the people of Bosnia-Herzegovina on Saturday afternoon as he met with leaders of the Muslim, Orthodox, Catholic and Jewish communities gathered in a Franciscan youth centre in Sarajevo. Noting that the city of Sarajevo stands at a crossroads of cultures and peoples, the Pope said such diversity constitutes, on the one hand, a great resource which has contributed to the social, cultural and spiritual development of the region. On the other hand, he said, it has also been the cause of painful rifts and bloody wars, most recently the conflict which devastated the country in the early 1990s. The Pope praised the work of the local Council for Interreligious Dialogue, set up in 1997 to promote reconciliation, to coordinate common initiatives and to develop relations with Bosnia’s State Authorities. Interreligious dialogue, he said, should not be limited merely to leaders of religious communities, but must also extend as far as possible to all believers, since it is above all “a conversation about human existence”. Through dialogue, he told the religious leaders present, a spirit of fraternity is developed, which unites and favours the promotion of moral values, justice, freedom and peace. But in order for dialogue to be authentic and effective, he stressed, it must be based on a solid sense of identity, without which it can be ineffective or even harmful. Praising his hosts for all their efforts to promote peace in the country, Pope Francis urged them not to be discouraged by the ongling difficulties, but rather to continue with perseverance along the path of forgiveness and reconciliation. Concluding with a prayer for peace in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the Pope said may the city of Sarajevo, in the past a symbol of war and destruction, become again a sign of unity, where diversity does not represent a threat but rather a resource and an opportunity to grow together in peace and harmony. (Philippa Hitchen) Please find below the full text of Pope Francis’ prepared speech to Ecumenical and Interreligious representatives at the Franciscan International Study Centre in Sarajevo. Your Eminence, Distinguished Religious Authorities, Dear Friends, I am pleased to take part in this meeting, which brings together representatives of Bosnia and Herzegovina’s religious confessions. I offer cordial greetings to each one of you and to your communities, and I thank each of those who offered the kind words and we have just heard. Today’s meeting is a sign of our shared desire for fraternity and peace; it is a testimony to the friendship and cooperation that has been developing over the years and which you already experience daily. To be present here today is already a “message” of that dialogue which everyone seeks and strives for. I wish especially to recall one of the fruits of this desire for encounter and reconciliation, namely, the establishment in 1997 of a local Council for Interreligious Dialogue, which brings together Muslims, Christians and Jews. I am pleased by the work which this Council does to promote dialogue, coordinate common initiatives and develop relations with State Authorities. Your work in this region is immensely important, particularly in Sarajevo, which stands as the crossroads of peoples and cultures. Here, on the one hand, diversity constitutes a great resource which has contributed to the social, cultural and spiritual development of this region, while, on the other, it has also been the cause of painful rifts and bloody wars. It is not by chance that the birth of the Council for Interreligious Dialogue and other valuable initiatives in the area of interreligious and ecumenical work came about at the end of the war, in response to the need for reconciliation and rebuilding a society torn apart by conflict. Interreligious dialogue here, as in every part of the world, is an indispensible condition for peace, and for this reason is a duty for all believers (cf. Evangelii Gaudium, 250). Interreligious dialogue, before being a discussion of the main themes of faith, is a “conversation about human existence” (ibid.). This conversation shares the experiences of daily life in all its concreteness, with its joys and sufferings, its struggles and hopes; it takes on shared responsibilities; it plans a better future for all. We learn to live together, respecting each other’s differences freely; we know and accept one another’s identity. Through dialogue, a spirit of fraternity is recognized and developed, which unites and favours the promotion of moral values, justice, freedom and peace. Dialogue is a school of humanity and a builder of unity, which helps to build a society founded on tolerance and mutual respect. For this reason, interreligious dialogue cannot be limited merely to the few, to leaders of religious communities, but must also extend as far as possible to all believers, engaging the different sectors of civil society. Particular attention must be paid to young men and women who are called to build the future of this country. It is always worth remembering, however, that for dialogue to be authentic and effective, it presupposes a solid identity: without an established identity, dialogue is of no use or even harmful. I say this with the young in mind, but it applies to everyone. I sincerely appreciate all that you have managed to accomplish up to this point and I encourage each of you in your efforts for the cause of peace of which you, as religious leaders, are the first guardians here in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I assure you that the Catholic Church will continue to offer her full support and willingness to help. We are all aware that there is a long way yet to go. Let us not be discouraged, however, by the difficulties, but rather continue with perseverance along the way of forgiveness and reconciliation. While we seek to recall the past with honesty, thereby learning the lessons of history, we must also avoid lamentation and recrimination, letting ourselves instead be purified by God who gives us the present and the future: he is our future, he is the ultimate source of peace. This city, which in the recent past sadly became a symbol of war and destruction, today, with its variety of peoples, cultures and religions, can become again a sign of unity, a place in which diversity does not represent a threat but rather a resource, an opportunity to grow together. In a world unfortunately rent by conflicts, this land can become a message: attesting that it is possible to live together side by side, in diversity but rooted in a common humanity, building together a future of peace and brotherhood. I am grateful to you all for your presence and for the prayers which you will, of your goodness, offer for my ministry. For my part, I assure you that I will pray for you. May the Lord bless us all. PRAYER Almighty and eternal God, good and merciful Father; Creator of heaven and earth, of all that is visible and invisible; God of Abraham, God of Isaac, God of Jacob, King and Lord of the past, of the present and of the future; sole judge of every man and woman, who reward your faithful with eternal glory! We, the descendents of Abraham according to our faith in you, the one God, Jews, Christians and Muslims, humbly stand before you and with trust we pray to you for this country, Bosnia and Herzegovina, that men and women, followers of different religions, nations and cultures may live here in peace and harmony. We pray to you, O Father, that it may be so in every country of the world! Strengthen in each of us faith and hope, mutual respect and sincere love for all of our brothers and sisters. Grant that we may dedicate ourselves courageously to building a just society, to being men and women of good will, filled with mutual understanding and forgiveness, patient artisans of dialogue and peace. May each of our thoughts, words and actions be in harmony with your holy will. May everything be to your glory and honour and for our salvation. Praise and eternal glory to you, our God! Amen. (from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) On Saturday June 6 Pope Francis was set to deliver a speech during a meeting in Sarajevo with men and women religious. But after listening to first hand testimonies of persecution suffered by people during the recent war and the challenges facing people in the region today he decided to speak off the cuff. This is Vatican Radio’s translation of what he said:
I prepared a discourse for you but after hearing the testimony of the priests and woman religious, I feel I need to speak to you off the cuff. They told us about their experiences, good and bad things, so I shall leave my discourse with the Cardinal Archbishop. It’s a good discourse! The witnesses spoke for themselves. This is the memory of your people. A people that has no memory has no future. This is the memory of your fathers and mothers in the Faith. Only three people spoke but behind them are many others who suffered as well.
Dear sisters and brothers, you must not forget your history, not in order to hold grudges, but in order to create peace. Not to consider that history as something strange, but to love as they loved. In your blood, in your vocation, is the vocation and blood of these three martyrs. There is the blood and the vocation of many religious, priests and seminarians. The Apostle Paul, in his letter to the Hebrews, tells us not to forget those who have gone before us, those who have transmitted the Faith to us. These people have transmitted the Faith to you, and taught you how to live the Faith. The Apostle Paul tells us not to forget Jesus Christ, the first martyr. These people have followed in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. We need to restore memory in order to make peace.
A few words are lodged in my heart: one of these is “forgiveness”. A man and a woman who consecrate their lives to the Lord, but don’t know how to forgive, are worth nothing. Forgiving an enemy who says something bad to you, or a sister who is jealous, isn’t difficult. But forgiving someone who kicks you and hurts you, who threatens your life with a gun, that is hard to forgive. Yet they did this, and they tell us we should do the same. Something else that stays with me is the 120 days in the concentration camp. How many times the spirit of the world causes us to forget those who have preceded us with their suffering? Those days in the concentration camp were counted by the minute because every minute, every hour, was torture: living together, filthy, without food or water, in the heat and the cold, and for so long. And we who complain when our tooth hurts, or because we want a TV in our room, or more creature comforts, or we gossip about the superior because the food isn’t good enough. Don’t forget the testimonies of those who went before. Think how much they suffered. Think about the six-litre blood transfusion the first priest received in order to keep him alive. Carry a cross that is worthy of Jesus Christ. Worldly sisters, priests and bishops are caricatures who are worth nothing because they do not remember the martyrs. They don’t remember Jesus Christ crucified who is our only glory.
I think of (the story we were told about) the militiaman who gave a pear to the sister, and the Muslim woman who lives in America now, and who fed the priest. We are all brothers and sisters, even that cruel man. I don’t know what he was thinking, but he felt the Holy Spirit. Maybe he remembered his mother when he gave that pear to the sister. And that Muslim woman who went beyond religious difference, she believed in God. Seek the God of all. We all have the possibility to seek the seeds of Good, because we are all Children of God. Blessed are you who have these witnesses so close to you. Please never forget them. May our lives grow though these memories. I think of the priest whose parents and sister died, he was left alone but he was the fruit of love, marital love. I think of the sister, she too was a daughter. I think of what the Cardinal Archbishop said: what happens to the Garden of Life? Why doesn’t it flourish? Pray for families so that they may flourish with many children and that there may be many vocations. Finally, I would like to tell you that what we have heard is a story of cruelty. Today, in wars around the world, we see so much cruelty. Be the opposite of cruel: be tender, fraternal, forgiving. And carry the cross of Jesus Christ. That’s what Holy Mother Church wants of you: to be small martyrs, small witnesses of the Cross of Christ. May God bless you and please pray for me.
(from Vatican Radio)…
From the “Jerusalem of
the West”, the ancient cradle of coexisting cultures, ethnicities and
religions, Pope Francis admonished war, calling “patience and trust” essential
to such dialogue in order to heal the wounds of the past. On arriving in
Sarajevo — a city which still bears signs of destruction from the bloody
conflict 20 years ago — the Pontiff urged the entire community of Bosnia and
Herzegovina to look to the future with hope, setting aside ancient grievances.
The Holy Father pointed to the “culture of encounter” as the only way to fight
“the barbarity of those who would make of every difference the occasion and pretext
for further unspeakable violence”. To the members of the Presidency and the highest
political, diplomatic, civil and religious authorities of the country — who met
in the Presidential Palace on Saturday morning, 6 June, after arriving at the
airport — Francis introduced himself “a pilgrim of peace and dialogue”.
Recognizing the progress made since the 1995 agreement in Dayton, the Pontiff
explicitly asked the international community, especially Europe, to favour the
already-begun peace process. A horizon of trust which the Pope underlined once again
during the Mass celebrated in Koševo
Stadium in the presence of tens of thousands of people. After denouncing the
horrors of war and admonishing the trafficking of arms, the Pontiff recalled
that “crafting peace is a skilled work”. “It requires passion, patience,
experience and tenacity” and must be sown with an attitude and action of
service, brotherhood, dialogue and mercy. It is a work “to be carried forward
each day, step by step, without ever growing tired. making peace is the work of
artisans”. The address to authorities The homily at the Koševo Stadium …
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis has called on all men and women to become “artisans of peace” in living out their daily lives.
During his homily as he celebrated Mass at Sarajevo’s “Kosevo Stadium” in the the presence of over 65,000 people, the Pope’s cry for peace echoed forcefully: “ war never again !”
In a city which has known the abyss of pain and suffering inflicted by war, the Pope turned his thoughts to the many armed conflicts presently affecting our world and said “they are a kind of third world war being fought piecemeal, and – he said – in the context of global communications we sense an atmosphere of war ”.
Reflecting on the fact that “Peace is God’s dream, his plan for humanity, for history, for all creation, the Pope said there are people who wish to incite and foment this atmospherem of war deliberately: “those who want conflict between different cultures and societies, and those who speculate on wars for the purpose of selling arms”.
But war – he said “means children, women and the elderly in refugee camps; it means forced displacement of peoples; it means destroyed houses, streets and factories; it means, above all, countless shattered lives”.
And to the people of Sarajevo he said: “You know this well, having experienced it here: how much suffering, how much destruction, how much pain!”
Appealing to all men and women of goodwill to be peacemakers and to carry forward their work “each day, step by step, without ever growing tired”, Pope Francis said that peace must be put into practice with acts of kindness, fraternity, dialogue and mercy. This must be done – he said – with compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness patience and a spirit of forgiveness.
The Pope said these attitudes are necessary to become artisans of peace precisely where we live out our daily lives. But – he said – “we should not fool ourselves into thinking that this all depends on us! Peace – he said – is a gift from God” because with his Spirit he can imprint these attitudes in our hearts and in our flesh, and can make us true instruments of his peace.
Pope Francis concluded asking the Lord for the grace to have a simple heart, the grace of patience, the grace to struggle and work for justice, to be merciful, to work for peace, to sow peace and not war and discord.
Please find below the full text of the Pope’s homily :
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
The word peace echoes several times through the Scripture readings which we have just heard. It is a powerful, prophetic word! Peace is God’s dream, his plan for humanity, for history, for all creation. And it is a plan which always meets opposition from men and from the evil one. Even in our time, the desire for peace and the commitment to build peace collide against the reality of many armed conflicts presently affecting our world. They are a kind of third world war being fought piecemeal and, in the context of global communications, we sense an atmosphere of war.
Some wish to incite and foment this atmosphere deliberately, mainly those who want conflict between different cultures and societies, and those who speculate on wars for the purpose of selling arms. But war means children, women and the elderly in refugee camps; it means forced displacement of peoples; it means destroyed houses, streets and factories; it means, above all, countless shattered lives. You know this well, having experienced it here: how much suffering, how much destruction, how much pain! Today, dear brothers and sisters, the cry of God’s people goes up once again from this city, the cry of all men and women of good will: war never again!
Within this atmosphere of war, like a ray of sunshine piercing the clouds, resound the words of Jesus in the Gospel: “Blessed are the peacemakers” ( Mt 5:9 ). This appeal is always applicable, in every generation. He does not say: “Blessed are the preachers of peace”, since all are capable of proclaiming peace, even in a hypocritical, or indeed duplicitous, manner. No. He says: “Blessed are the peacemakers ”, that is, those who make peace. Crafting peace is a skilled work: it requires passion, patience, experience and tenacity. Blessed are those who sow peace by their daily actions, their attitudes and acts of kindness, of fraternity, of dialogue, of mercy… These, indeed, “shall be called children of God”, for God sows peace, always, everywhere; in the fullness of time, he sowed in the world his Son, that we might have peace! Peacemaking is a work to be carried forward each day, step by step, without ever growing tired.
So how does one do this , how do we build peace? The prophet Isaiah reminds us succinctly: “The effect of righteousness will be peace” (32:17). Opus justitiae pax (“the work of justice is peace”), from the Vulgate version of Scripture, has become a famous motto, even adopted prophetically by Pope Pius XII. Peace is a work of justice. Here too: not a justice proclaimed, imagined, planned… but rather a justice put into practice , lived out. The Gospel teaches us that the ultimate fulfilment of justice is love: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself” ( Mt 22:39; Rm 13:9 ). When, by the grace of God, we truly follow this commandment, how things change! Because we ourselves change! Those whom I looked upon as my enemy really have the same face as I do, the same heart, the same soul. We have the same Father in heaven. True justice, then, is doing to others what I would want them to do to me, to my people (cf. Mt 7:12) .
Saint Paul, in the second reading, shows us the attitude needed to make peace : “Put on then… compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive” (Col 3:12-13 ).
These are the attitudes necessary to become artisans of peace precisely where we live out our daily lives. But we should not fool ourselves into thinking that this all depends on us! We would fall into an illusive moralizing. Peace is a gift from God , not in the magical sense, but because with his Spirit he can imprint these attitudes in our hearts and in our flesh, and can make us true instruments of his peace. And, going further, the Apostle says that peace is a gift of God because it is the fruit of his reconciliation with us. Only if we allow ourselves to be reconciled with God can human beings become artisans of peace.
Dear Brothers and Sisters, today we ask the Lord together, through the intercession of the Virgin Mary, for the grace to have a simple heart, the grace of patience, the grace to struggle and work for justice, to be merciful, to work for peace, to sow peace and not war and discord. This is the way which brings happiness, which leads to blessedness.
(from Vatican Radio)…
(Vatican Radio) Pope Francis said he has travelled to Bosnia and Herzegovina as “a pilgrim of peace and dialogue.”
The Pope arrived at the International Sarajevo Airport on Saturday morning, shortly after 9. After exiting the papal plane and descending the steps, he was greeted on the tarmac by the Croat member of the three-member presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dragan Covic.
The Pope then proceeded to greet the dignitaries who lined the red carpet, as well as the dozens of young people in traditional folk costumes. Many of the young people held Vatican flags. The Pope also stopped to listen to a few young girls, who sung for him.
The papal motorcade then proceeded to the Presidential Palace, in the heart of the city. The main street was lined with locals, who had gathered to see the pontiff. The Pope was greeted by the current Chairman of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Mladen Ivanic, the Serb member. The Bosniak member of the presidency, Bakir Izetbegovic, stood with his colleagues and the Pope in front of the Presidential Palace during the Vatican anthem.
The Pope then met with the Bosniak authorities, after which President Ivanic gave an official speech, greeting the pontiff to the country.
Pope Francis, in turn, said he travelled to the country as “a pilgrim of peace and dialogue.”
He said Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina “have a special significance for Europe and for the whole world.”
“I am pleased to be in this city which, although it has suffered so much in the bloody conflicts of the past century, has once again become a place of dialogue and peaceful coexistence,” he said.
“For centuries in these lands, communities were present who professed different religions, who belonged to distinct ethnic and cultural groups, each endowed with its own rich characteristics,” he said.
After the two discourses, the Pope and the three leaders stepped out onto the main street in front of the presidential palace and set free seven white doves from a wooden cage.
The Pope then boarded his popemobile, accompanied by Cardinal Vinko Puljic of Sarajevo, waving to bystanders and occasionally kissing babies on his way to the stadium, where thousands were awaiting him for Mass.
The full text of the Pope’s greeting to the Bosniak authorities follows:
Dear Ministers of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Dear Chairman of the Presidency,
Members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
I wish to thank the members of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina for their kind welcome, and in a special way for the cordial welcome extended to me by His Excellency Mladen Ivanić Chairman of the Presidency, on behalf of everyone. I am pleased to be in this city which, although it has suffered so much in the bloody conflicts of the past century, has once again become a place of dialogue and peaceful coexistence. It went on from being a culture of conflict and war to creating a culture of encounter.
Sarajevo and Bosnia and Herzegovina have a special significance for Europe and for the whole world. For centuries in these lands, communities were present who professed different religions, who belonged to distinct ethnic and cultural groups, each endowed with its own rich characteristics; each fostered its own traditions, without these differences having impeded for any length of time the establishment of mutually fraternal and cordial relationships.
The very architecture and layout of Sarajevo reveals visible and substantial characteristics of these different communities, each a short distance from the other – synagogues, churches and mosques – so much so that Sarajevo has been called “The Jerusalem of Europe”. Indeed it represents a crossroads of cultures, nations and religions, a status which requires the building of new bridges, while maintaining and restoring older ones, thus ensuring avenues of communication that are efficient, sure and fraternal.
We need to communicate with each other, to discover the gifts of each person, to promote that which unites us, and to regard our differences as an opportunity to grow in mutual respect. Patience and trust are called for in such dialogue, permitting individuals, families and communities to hand on the values of their own culture and welcome the good which comes from others’ experiences.
In so doing, even the deep wounds of the recent past will be set aside, so that the future may be looked to with hope, facing the daily problems that all communities experience with hearts and minds free of fear and resentment.
I have come here as a pilgrim of peace and dialogue, eighteen years after Saint John Paul II’s historic visit, which took place less than two years after the signing of the Dayton Peace Accord. I am happy to see the progress which has been made, for which we must thank the Lord and so many men and women of good will. However, we should not become complacent with what has been achieved so far, but rather seek to make further efforts towards reinforcing trust and creating opportunities for growth in mutual knowledge and respect. In order to favour this path, the solidarity and collaboration of the International Community is fundamental, in particular that of the European Union and of all Countries and Organizations operating in the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Bosnia and Herzegovina is indeed an integral part of Europe, the successes and tragic experiences of the former are integrated fully into the latter’s history of successes and tragedies. They constitute, too, a clear call to pursue every avenue of peace, in order that processes already underway can be yet more resilient and binding.
In this land, peace and harmony among Croats, Serbs and Bosnians, and the initiatives taken to extend these even further, as well as the cordial and fraternal relations among Muslims, Hebrews and Christians, take on an importance that goes beyond its boundaries. These initiatives offer a witness to the entire world that such cooperation among varying ethnic groups and religions in view of the common good is possible; that a plurality of cultures and traditions can coexist and give rise to original and effective solutions to problems; that even the deepest wounds can be healed by purifying memories and firmly anchoring hopes in the future. I saw this hope today in those children who I greeted at the airport: Muslims, Orthodox, Jews, Catholics, other minorities, all together and joyful. That is hope. Let us bet on that.
In order to successfully oppose the barbarity of those who would make of every difference the occasion and pretext for further unspeakable violence, we need to recognize the fundamental values of human communities, values in the name of which we can and must cooperate, build and dialogue, pardon and grow; this will allow different voices to unite in creating a melody of sublime nobility and beauty, instead of the fanatical cries of hatred.
Responsible politicians are called to the important task of being the first servants of their communities, taking actions which safeguard above all the fundamental rights of the human person, among which the right to religious freedom stands out. In this way it will be possible to build, with concrete measures, a more peaceful and just society, working step-by-step together to solve the many problems which people experience daily.
In order for this to come about, it is vital that all citizens be equal both before the law and its implementation, whatever their ethnic, religious or geographical affiliation. All alike will then feel truly involved in public life. Enjoying the same rights, they will be able to make their specific contribution to the common good.
Your Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,
The Catholic Church, by means of the prayer and the works of her faithful and her institutions, is taking an part in the process of material and moral reconstruction of Bosnia and Herzegovina, sharing the country’s joys and concerns. The Church is committed to offering her particular solicitude and closeness to the poor and to those most in need, inspired by the teaching and example of her Divine Master, Jesus.
The Holy See praises the work carried out in these recent years, and is determined to continue promoting cooperation, dialogue and solidarity, in the sure knowledge that peace and mutual listening in an ordered and civil society are indispensable conditions for authentic and lasting development. Through the contribution of all, and leaving behind completely the dark clouds of storms gone by, the Holy See fervently hopes that Bosnia and Herzegovina may continue along the journey embarked upon, so that after the winter chill, springtime may come to blossom.
With these thoughts I implore the Almighty for peace and prosperity in Sarajevo and all of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Thank you.
(from Vatican Radio)…