MIDEAST PEACE REQUIRES RELIGIOUS FREEDOM, POPE TELLS ARMENIAN LEADER
By Cindy Wooden

Catholic Weekly
s/0805940.htm
Nov 24 2008
MI

VATICAN CITY (CNS) — Peace in the Middle East and religious freedom
for all the region’s inhabitants will not be achieved without respect
for other religions and self-determination for the nations involved,
Pope Benedict XVI said.

Meeting the Lebanon-based Armenian Catholicos Aram of Cilicia Nov. 24,
the pope said, "I cannot fail to assure you of my daily prayers and
deep concern for the people of Lebanon and the Middle East.

"How can we not be grieved by the tensions and conflicts which continue
to frustrate all efforts to foster reconciliation and peace at every
level of civil and political life in the region?" the pope asked
at the end of a midday prayer service with the Armenian patriarch,
nine of his bishops and about 50 of his faithful from Lebanon, Syria,
Iran, Cyprus, Italy, the United States and Canada.

The pope said all Christians have been saddened by "the escalation
of persecution and violence against Christians in parts of the Middle
East and elsewhere."

"Only when the countries involved can determine their own destiny,
and the various ethnic groups and religious communities accept
and respect each other fully, will peace be built on the solid
foundations of solidarity, justice and respect for the legitimate
rights of individuals and peoples," the pope said.

Pope Benedict and Catholicos Aram spent 25 minutes speaking privately
in the papal library before joining the rest of the delegation from the
Armenian Apostolic Church in the Vatican’s Redemptoris Mater Chapel.

Surrounded by the vibrant, modern Eastern-style mosaics that decorate
the chapel, the Armenians chanted their traditional hymns and read
the Psalm and Gospel in Armenian.

The pope used English for most of the prayers he recited, but "ahs"
of appreciation were heard when he said, "Khaghaghutiun amenetzun,"
which is Armenian for "Peace be with you."

Pope Benedict also praised the catholicos for his church’s leadership
in the Catholic-Oriental Orthodox ecumenical dialogue, which, he said,
"promises to clarify theological issues which have divided us in the
past but now appear open to greater consensus."

In his remarks to the pope, the catholicos said Christian unity is
essential "in a world in dire need of the life-giving message of
the Gospel."

"The united voice and the common witness of the churches in a polarized
world is the call of Christ, which is more imperative and urgent
today than ever before," he said.

While the pope paid tribute to the "unspeakable suffering" of the
Armenian people in the 20th century, Catholicos Aram said it was
essential that religions and governments explicitly acknowledge the
Armenian genocide and work to prevent new genocides "by affirming
the rights of all people to dignity, a dignified life, freedom and
self-determination."

An estimated 1.5 million Armenians — more than half the Armenian
population at the time — died in a forced evacuation by Ottoman
Turks in 1915-18. Turkey rejects the accusation of genocide, saying
the deaths were due largely to disease and famine.

Catholicos Aram also told the pope that Christian churches must
engage in "a responsible interfaith dialogue" because "we are
living in a globalized world characterized by interdependence and
interaction." he said.

Responsible dialogue, he said, "preserves and articulates the integrity
and uniqueness of Christian faith" while at the same time respecting
the "traditions and values" of others.

The catholicos said Lebanon is a country where such dialogue takes
place between Christians and Muslims.