BLESSED ARE THE PEACEMAKERS

Vatican City,  (VIS) - "Blessed are the peacemakers" is the theme chosen by the Holy Father for the forty-sixth World Day of Peace, which will fall on 1 January 2013, according to a communique released today by the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace. "The annual Message of the Pope, in the complexity of the present time, will encourage everyone to take responsibility with regard to peace-building", the English-language communique reads.

"The Message will embrace, therefore, the fullness and diversity of the concept of peace, starting from the human being: inner peace and outer peace; then, highlighting the anthropological emergency, the nature and incidence of nihilism; and, at the same time, fundamental rights, in the first place freedom of conscience, freedom of expression, freedom of religion. The Message will offer, as well, an ethical reflection on some measures the world is going to take to contain the financial and economic crisis, the educational crisis, the crisis of the institutions and politics, which is also - in many cases - a worrying crisis of democracy.

"The Message will also look at the fifteth Anniversary of Vatican Council II and of the Encyclical Letter by Pope John XXIII, 'Pacem in Terris', according to which the primacy is always for human dignity and freedom, for the building of an earthly city to the service of every person, without any discrimination, and directed to the common good which is based on justice and true peace.

"'Blessed are the peacemakers' will be the eighth Message of Pope Benedict XVI for the Celebration of the World Day of Peace. Following are the titles of the previous ones: 'In Truth, Peace' (2006), 'The Human Person, Heart of Peace' (2007), 'The Human Family, a Community of Peace' (2008), 'Fighting Poverty to Build Peace' (2009), 'If you want to cultivate peace, protect creation' (2010), 'Religious Freedom, the path to peace' (2011), 'Educating young people in justice and peace' (2012)".