VATICAN The Pope in Bahrain: religious freedom, education and concrete actions against violence

In his speech before the Forum for Dialogue with other religious leaders, the Pope invited to give concrete form to fraternity: “In the garden of humanity, instead of taking care of it in its entirety, you play with fire, with missiles and bombs. Religion should not be coercion, but freedom, which is opening up to the good for which we were created.”

Awali () – It is not enough to say that a religion is peaceful: we must act accordingly. It is not enough to affirm religious freedom: it is necessary to really overcome all constrictions in matters of faith and work so that even education does not become self-referential indoctrination, but a way of truly opening a space for others. Pope Francis’ message this morning focused on the concrete consequences of fraternity. In Bahrain, he addressed the other religious leaders and personalities present at the “Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence”, the event on dialogue that is the occasion of the current apostolic journey.

In the Al-Fida’ square of the royal palace of Awali, together with the sovereign Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa, exponents of different religious confessions were present, summoned in the Gulf country for this occasion: among them the imam of al Azhar, Ahmed al Tayyeb , and the Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew, whom Francis greeted with affection. “East and West are more and more like two opposing seas”, said the Pontiff, commenting on the theme of the meeting, “instead, we are here together because we intend to navigate the same sea, choosing the route of the meeting and not the of the confrontation”.

A task that is more urgent than ever in today’s world, marked by conflicts: even from Awali, Francis did not stop raising his voice to call for an end to the war in Ukraine. “While the majority of the world’s population finds itself united by the same difficulties, plagued by serious food, ecological and pandemic crises, as well as by an increasingly scandalous planetary injustice,” he said, “a powerful few are focused on a determined fight by partisan interests, exhuming an obsolete language, redefining zones of influence and opposing blocs”. He described it as “a dramatically childish scenario: in the garden of humanity, instead of taking care of it in its entirety, we play with fire, with missiles and bombs, with weapons that cause tears and death, covering our common home with ashes and hatred.” “.

Therefore, it is necessary that believers of all religions respond by following the path of brotherhood. A path that was already indicated in 2019 in the Declaration signed in Abu Dhabi with al Tayyeb and that has been recalled by the same Declaration of the Kingdom of Bahrain discussed during the meeting these days. But so that they do not remain in mere words, Pope Francis today pointed out three specific challenges: prayer, education and action.

First of all, the dimension of the prayer: “The opening of the heart to the Most High -he explained- is essential to purify ourselves from selfishness, closedness, self-referentiality, falsehood and injustice”. Whoever prays, receives peace in his heart and can only become a witness and messenger of it”. But for this an indispensable premise is needed: religious freedom. “It is not enough to grant permissions and recognize freedom of worship, -emphasizes the Pope – but we must achieve true religious freedom. And not only each society, but each creed is called to verify this. He is called to ask whether he constrains God’s creatures from the outside or liberates them from within; if it helps man to reject rigidity, closure and violence; if it increases true freedom in believers, which is not to do what one pleases, but to dispose oneself to the good purpose for which we were created”.

A second challenge pointed out by the Pontiff is the education, alternative to ignorance that is the enemy of peace. But it must be an education truly “worthy of man, be dynamic and relational: therefore, not rigid and monolithic, but open to challenges and sensitive to cultural changes; not self-referential and isolating, but attentive to the history and culture of others; not static, but inquiring, to cover different and essential aspects of the only humanity to which we belong”. It must teach to “get into the heart of problems without presuming to have the solution and to solve complex problems in a simple way, but with the willingness to inhabit the crisis without giving in to the logic of conflict”. An education that increases the ability “to question oneself, to enter into crisis and to know how to dialogue with patience, respect and a spirit of listening; to learn the history and culture of others”. Because it is not enough to say that we are tolerant, but that we must give space to the other, give him rights and opportunities.

Education for Francisco also entails three urgencies: first, “the recognition of women in the public sphere.” Secondly, the protection of the fundamental rights of children: “Let us educate ourselves – exhorted the Pope – to look at crises, problems, wars, with the eyes of children: this is not naive kindness, but clairvoyant wisdom, because Only by thinking of them will progress be reflected in innocence instead of profit, and will contribute to building a future on a human scale”. And then education for citizenship, renouncing “the discriminatory use of the term minority, which carries with it the germ of a feeling of isolation and inferiority.”

Finally, the fraternity calls the action, to translate into coherent gestures the “no to the blasphemy of war and the use of violence”. “It is not enough to say that a religion is peaceful”, Francis specified, “it is necessary to condemn and isolate the violent ones who abuse its name”. The religious man, the man of peace, is also opposed to the arms race, to the business of war, to the market of death. He does not favor alliances against anyone, but paths of encounter with everyone: without giving in to relativism or syncretism of any kind, he pursues a single path: that of fraternity, that of dialogue, that of peace “.

“The Creator – Francis concluded – invites us to act, especially in favor of too many of his creatures who still do not find enough space in the agendas of the powerful: the poor, unborn children, the elderly, the sick, migrants… If we, who believe in the God of mercy, do not listen to those who suffer and give voice to those who do not have one, who will? Let us be on their side, let us work to help the wounded and tried human being. doing so, we will bring upon the world the blessing of the Most High”.