TRUE PEACE MEANS RESPECTING THE DIGNITY OF OTHERS

VATICAN CITY, MAR 17, 2005 (VIS) - Yesterday afternoon, Cardinal Secretary of State Angelo Sodano read a message from the Pope addressed to Cardinal Renato R. Martino and to participants in the conference for the 40th anniversary of the Vatican Council II Pastoral Constitution "Gaudium et Spes." The meeting, which is being held in the Vatican from March 16 to 18, has been promoted by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, of which Cardinal Martino is president.

  After recalling the theme of the conference, "The Call to Justice," the Holy Father writes that "at times, the huge advances in science and technology can result in the fundamental questions of justice being forgotten, despite a shared aspiration for greater solidarity between peoples and for a more human structuring of social relationships."

  John Paul II highlights the fact that "the sad persistence of armed conflict and recurring displays of violence in many parts of the world constitute a further proof of the inseparable relationship between justice and peace, in keeping with the fundamental teaching proposed with courageous clarity in Gaudium et Spes. On this subject, I wish to reaffirm once again that peace is the work of justice; indeed it is born from that order upon which the Divine Founder Himself wanted human society to be built."

  "How, then," the Pope asks, "can we not approve and encourage those men and women of good will who make such efforts to create conditions of greater justice in the world? Indeed, true peace on earth means the firm determination to respect others in their dignity, both individuals and peoples, and the constant will to increase fraternity among the members of the human family."

  The Pope concludes his message by referring to the need "never to forget the virtue of love that leads to forgiveness and reconciliation, and that animates Christian commitment in favor of justice. In any case, it remains unquestionable that the theme of justice is the foundation for the correct regulation of the social order."
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