VATICAN STATEMENT
on HOLY SITES DURING TIMES OF CONFLICT
(i.e. How to Treat the Temple Mount, the Upper Room in Jerusalem, etc)
In English and Italian
INTERVENTO DELL’OSSERVATORE PERMANENTE DELLA SANTA SEDE PRESSO L’ONU ALLA 58a SESSIONE DELLA COMMISSIONE DEI DIRITTI UMANI DELLE NAZIONI UNITE , 16.04.2002
INTERVENTO DELL’OSSERVATORE PERMANENTE DELLA SANTA SEDE PRESSO L’ONU ALLA 58a SESSIONE DELLA COMMISSIONE DEI DIRITTI UMANI DELLE NAZIONI UNITE
In occasione del dibattito sulla libertà religiosa alla 58a sessione della Commissione dei diritti umani della Nazioni Unite, che si svolge a Ginevra dal 18 marzo al 26 aprile, S.E. Mons. Diarmuid Martin, Osservatore Permanente della Santa Sede, ha pronunciato il 12 aprile 2002 l’intervento che pubblichiamo qui di seguito:
INTERVENTO DI S.E. MONS. DIARMUID MARTIN
Mr Chairman,
The right to freedom of religion - enshrined in art.18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights - has always been regarded as one of the cornerstones of the human rights edifice, since it touches one of the deepest dimensions of a person’s life and search for truth. To violate the right to freedom of religion is to violate one of the deepest sanctuaries of the dignity of a human person.
The Delegation of the Holy See wishes to address two questions concerning the realization of religious freedom within pluralist democratic societies.
1. Respect for religious freedom means, today, welcoming the contribution of religious believers as vital for the construction of a lasting peace. Working together, in a spirit of mutual respect, religions can bring a vital and original contribution to the coexistence of peoples and to peace. Religious leaders, invited by Pope John Paul II on January 24th to Assisi, committed themselves to a "Decalogue for Peace", rejecting terrorism and condemning "every recourse to violence and war in the name of God or of religion"1.
The International Consultative Conference on School Education in relation to Freedom of Religion and Belief, organized by the Special Rapporteur in Madrid in November last, provided a useful model of how to proceed in examining ways in which freedom of religion can be guaranteed and how religious belief can flourish within the framework of pluralist democratic regimes.
The very term "pluralist" implies that religious believers be recognised, alongside others, as active protagonists within their societies. It means that religious belief or adherence to a particular religious confession should not be an obstacle for access to professions in public life. It means that anti-religious teachings be eliminated from the school curriculum and from official documentation.
2. The question religious minorities, especially where a particular religious tradition is dominant, is addressed in different ways in national legislation. 48 countries, in fact, recognize a particular religion as having a special
Status, either as a State religion, an official or traditional religion or as the religion of the majority of the inhabitants.
The position of the Holy See regarding such situations was set out by the
Second
Vatican
Council
which affirms - fully in accordance with human rights instruments - that "if because of the circumstances of a particular people, special civil recognition is given to one religious community in the constitutional organization of a State, the right of all citizens and religious communities to religious freedom must be recognized and respected as well2". This right must apply, evidently,
also to non-citizens who reside temporarily within a country, bringing the contribution of their work to the good of society.
The Holy See welcomes dialogue with governments in order to ensure the widest possible respect
for the religious freedom of all. An open and frank dialogue will contribute to overcoming misunderstandings. All can work together in a common search for ways to ensure that people in any country, respectful of local culture and traditions, can freely profess their faith, while being able to "establish and maintain communications with individuals and communities in matters of religion and belief at the national and international level"3.
Allow me, in conclusion, to draw attention to a question of particular interest today:
respect of places of worship and holy sites in times of
conflict. The First Additional Protocol to the Geneva Conventions (Art. 53), as well as the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the event of Armed Conflict, lays down specific norms in regard to the protection of "historic monuments, works of art or places of worship which constitute the cultural and spiritual heritage of peoples".
The Holy See stresses that respect for these norms applies to all conflicts and to all parties in a conflict.
The Holy Sites in Jerusalem and the Holy Land have a special significance for the three monotheistic traditions – indeed for the whole of humanity. Disrespect for or misuse of these sites constitutes a violation of international norms – as well as bilateral agreements.
Any long-term solution to the crisis in the Middle East must
indeed address the question of respect for and unrestricted access to the religious sites, sacred to each religious tradition. This is also a dimension of religious freedom. It is a precondition for fostering a climate of dialogue between religions in the Middle East,
in the service of peace.
___________________________
1 Cf. L’Osservatore Romano, 6 March 2002, p.12
2 Declaration on Religious Liberty, n.6
3 Declaration on the Elimination of Intolerance and Discrimination Based on Religion, Art.6
[00592-02.01] [Original text: English]
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Vatican puts Holy Sites before people
NCR - Oct 31/97 -Vatican puts holy sites before people, he says - Elias Chacour, a Melkite priest from Galilee laments the irony of the dwindling number of Palestinian Christians in the major place of Christian shrines -
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- The "cold stones of the Holy Land" mean more to Vatican officials and many tourists than the lives of the dwindling population of Christians who live there, a prominent Melkite priest from Galilee has charged.
That harsh assessment came from Fr. Elias Chacour, on the last leg of a three-stop visit to the United States in late September. He claims that diplomatic ties between the Vatican and Israel, established in 1994, were aimed primarily at maintaining Rome's access to holy sites in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Galilee.
Chacour was a featured speaker at an event in Dallas sponsored by World Vision, an international relief agency. He had made an earlier appearance in Chicago before arriving at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Sacramento, a church that had sent a group of young people to Chacour's parish in the summer of 1996.
Overlooked by Rome, said Chacour, was the plight of Palestinian Christians, 60 percent of whom have left Israel, the West Bank and Gaza over the past two decades. Just 25 percent, or 160,000, of the former Christian population remains, he said.
For 50 years, the Vatican has done little if anything to help Christians, many of them Catholic, remain in the Holy Land, said Chacour, author and
two-time nominee for the Nobel Peace Prize. "I've been a priest for 33 years in Galilee and I've never been helped by a Vatican agency in my efforts to keep Christians in the country."
http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1141/is_n2_v34/ai_19967472
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Is the Information True ? Yes
Is the Information Accurate ? Yes.
Should I be making an effort to understand the so-called End Times ?
Do I understand that there are Spiritual Forces that want to prevent me from having GREATER spiritual understanding about God, but that God himself is always in MORE of a hurry than I am, for Me to get to know HIM ?
Do I realize what my personal state of preparation will be, within me, when Islam becomes the Dominant Religion in the United States, as it is already in Europe, and how I will personally be required to defend my Faith, by argument and persuasion, using knowledge of the Bible and of History and of Christianity, and that God will rightly hold me accountable ?
In view of these facts, should I try to set aside more time for the study of the Word of God, and more time for the study of History and the true history of the Christian Church, and to learn about how other Christians in the past, actually learned to have and to gain GREAT and genuine spiritual strength ?
If no one reaches out to help prepare me for the coming challenges, whose job is it STILL for me to be prepared to answer these challenges and questions ?
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I Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in
your hearts: and be ready always to give
an answer to every man that asketh you a
reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:
II Timothy 2: 15
Study to show thyself approved
unto God, a workman that needeth not to be
ashamed, rightly dividing
the word of truth.
THERE IS NOT ONE CHRISTIAN NATION ON EARTH WHERE MUSLIMS ARE PERSECUTED.
Yet in most nations where the majority of the population are Muslims, there is systematic government persecution of Christians.
"Everyone has the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion; this right includes freedom to change his religion or belief, and
freedom, either alone or in community with others and in public or private, to
manifest his religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship and
observance."
--Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights--