PRESS RELEASE
Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin
Address: Holy Etchiamdzin, Republic of Armenia
Tel: (00 374 2) 28 51 52
Fax: (00 374 2) 15 16 24
E-Mail: holysee@etchmiadzin.am

Information Services
Message of His Holiness KAREKIN II
Supreme Patriarch and Catholicos of All Armenians
World Summit of Religious Leaders
Baku, April 26, 2010

Honored brothers and guests,

We greet you on behalf of the Armenian Apostolic Church and the Armenian
people dispersed throughout the world, and wish success to the activities of
this summit. We extend our thanks to His Excellency Sheikh ul-Islam
Allahshukur Pashazade, Grand Mufti of the Muslims of the Caucasus, and to
His Holiness Kirill I, Patriarch of Moscow and All Russia, for the
invitation to participate in this conference.

We offer thanks to our Lord, that we, the leaders of the world’s religions,
as testimony to good will, have gathered together to consider and search for
avenues of cooperation for the sake of the preservation and defense of
spiritual values in our contemporary world, to direct our call for love,
solidarity and collaboration to our peoples and the entire world and in an
effort to overcome the challenges and fundamental issues facing mankind
today.

We welcome the initiative to discuss issues surrounding globalization,
religion and traditional values in the summit, and in this respect, to
reflect on the dialogue between cultures and religions, as well as to
discuss ways to overcome the prevailing dangers that disturb the just and
peaceful progress of the world. It is our sacred duty to bring every effort,
energy and vigor to putting an end to wars and terrorism; to eliminate
poverty and its resulting societal effects, for the sake of a life of
security, goodness and peace for mankind, which is also the Will of God, as
the Holy Bible says, "For God is not the God of discord, but of peace". I
Corinthians 14:33.

In our days of continuing expansion of the dimensions of communicative and
collaborative progress in political, economic, scientific, technological,
cultural, educational and other spheres, and the sustained strengthening of
ties and relationships among peoples, we regrettably do not yet see the
outlook of a world where humanity and philanthropy, divinely established
commandments and laws reign; where man is the highest value and where his
rights are respected. Today climatological and environmental issues
resulting from technological experiments and atmospheric pollution are of
universal concern, and testify to the lack of respect and care by mankind
for the world formed by the Creator. Terrorism, intergovernmental and
regional conflicts, and interethnic clashes endanger the safety and lives of
many thousands of people. Additional threats are created by informational
incitements and manipulation of religious factors, using distorted facts and
by warping the religious knowledge of the faithful, to greater enflame the
fire of tragedies and clashes and serve as an opportunity for the
destruction of cultural treasures. In the processes of globalization, the
dangers of equalization of religious and national values come forth, which
threaten national identities, the spiritual being of men, the sacred
understanding of the family, and the moral purity of the new generation.

We believe in the dialogue between religions and cultures aimed at facing
the current issues in the world, and for the welfare and prosperity of
mankind. For all peoples, alongside of their unique national characteristics
and customs, the values of philanthropy, honesty and justice are universal;
the aspiration for a free, peaceful and happy life is universal. Which
culture does not praise respect, love and support to one another? Which
culture does not appreciate and elevate the noble, the virtuous and those
who serve mankind with goodness? For us – the leaders of religions and all
those who serve the Word of God – our mission is to reinforce those global
values within our people, to strengthen them in faith, to lead them on
God-pleasing paths, so that goodness and decency flourish in this world,
according to the words of the Apostle, "that the excellence of the power may
be of God and not of us" II Corinthians 4:7, since the efforts of men for
harmony, peace and welfare will be in vain without the help of God.

As we are in Baku, we offer praise and thanks to God today, for the
continued efforts to solve the Karabagh conflict through peaceful means. In
this respect, it is necessary to note with importance and appreciation the
conscientious efforts of the countries that Co-Chair the OSCE Minsk Group.
We also reflect with gratitude on the mediation efforts invested by the
Russian Orthodox Church from the very beginning to find a solution to the
problem. The authorities of our countries, at the highest level of the
presidents of the republics, similarly continue the process of negotiations.
We are also pleased that there are ties and dialogue among the
representatives of civil society and non-governmental organizations of our
two countries, in the context of which joint film productions and youth and
sports programs are taking place. We are hopeful that these efforts shall
continue, so that the final resolution of the problem be found exclusively
through peaceful means, to decide the difficult issues according to
international laws and standards and corresponding to the rights of the
people. We, as Pontiff of All Armenians, place importance on the
continuation of our efforts and work with the Grand Mufti of the Muslims of
the Caucasus, Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, aimed at the resolution
of this issue. It is our responsibility to exhort our peoples, to assist the
presidents of our countries to continue peacefully toward the solution of
the problems and final resolution of the issue. We remain hopeful that
common efforts to overcome the present challenges and the securing of a
peaceful and creative life in the Caucasus region will be crowned with the
desired success, and the harmonious life and experience of cooperation
between the Armenian and Azerbaijani peoples will once again sprout with
seedlings of peace. We pray to see that beautiful day, when all closed
borders in the region will be open, and the travel of peoples, free; just as
in the past when we had the opportunity to visit Baku and provide service
for a short period of time to our Armenian church there. Let us remain
faithful to the commandment of Christ’s apostle, which is also a call
directed to all humanity: "Live in peace, and the God of love and peace will
be with you." II Corinthians 13:11.

Offering our prayers for peace and welfare in the lives of all peoples, we
once again welcome the convening of this summit and wish success to its
work.

It is with love that we extend an invitation to convene the next World
Summit of Religious Leaders in Armenia, at the Mother See of Holy
Etchmiadzin. Conveying our respect and thanks once again, we invite His
Excellency Sheikh ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade, the Grand Mufti of the
Muslims of the Caucasus, to visit the Mother See of Holy Etchmiadzin.

May the blessings of the Most High God protect the world, and may heavenly
wisdom illuminate us – the religious and political leaders of the world
– to
continue toward the blessed shelters of peace, goodness and virtue.

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