Vatican City, 18 December 2015 (VIS) –
The Bilateral Commission of the Delegations of the Chief Rabbinate of
Israel and the Holy See's Commission for Religious Relations with the
Jews held its 13th meeting in Jerusalem in the offices of the Konrad
Adenauer Foundation on the theme “Migrants and refugees: threat or
opportunity?” on 16 and 17 December. At the end of the event the
Commission issued a joint statement, which began by commemorating the
recently deceased Cardinal Jorge Mejia, the first Catholic co-chair
of the Bilateral Commission, and conveyed wishes for a full and
speedy recovery to Chief Rabbi Shear Yashuv Cohen.
The meeting, chaired by Chief Rabbi
Rasson Arousi and Cardinal Peter Kodwo Appiah Turkson, president of
the Pontifical Council “Justice and Peace”, focused primarily on
the “enormous current humanitarian crisis in the form of hundreds
of thousands of refugees seeking asylum and the challenges this
poses”, highlighting a number of issues, including the tensions
between the obligation to welcome and “love the stranger as
yourself” while meeting one’s responsibilities to one’s own
identity, society, community and specific religious mission; the
challenge posed by migration in terms of the fullness and
authenticity of human existence and experience, and the moral demands
for respect for human dignity that cannot be ignored.
During the meeting, it was reiterated
that Jews and Christians are required to address these challenges and
to do the utmost to ensure that the Divine Image in which all
humanity is created is respected and fostered fully among migrant and
refugee populations.
Similarly, immigrants are to be
recognised as a blessed resource to be welcomed and respected for
their human dignity, and as potential to contribute to the positive
growth and development of society. To help influence public opinion
and legislatures to regulate and more effectively implement
immigration procedures, mindful of the preferred destinations of
migrants themselves.
Finally, the Bilateral Commission
attended a presentation on Israeli initiatives to address the plight
of refugees and victims of conflict.
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