Louis BIRA sx
In a world wounded by the Covid-19 pandemic and other wounds due to discrimination of all kinds from which many men and women of our time suffer, believers cannot stand idly (Mt 20, 6). Because of their faith in a compassionate God and following the example of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10: 25-37), they are invited to creative solidarity towards the excluded and the wounded of our humanity whose suffering has been amplified due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This encouragement to Christians emerges from a Document published by the Ecumenical Council of Churches (WCC) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (CPDI) entitled “Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity. A Christian Call to Reflection and Action During COVID-19 and Beyond”. The text already available in English was released on July 27, 2020. We publish here its seven recommendations[1].
We call upon all Christians to serve our neighbours, and to serve alongside them, taking into consideration the recommendations below.
1. Find ways of bearing witness to suffering, drawing attention to it, and challenging any forces that aim to silence or exclude the voice of the wounded and vulnerable among us, holding accountable the people and structures behind this suffering.
2. Promote a culture of inclusivism which celebrates difference as God’s gift, to counter all signs of exclusivism we see today in our societies at various levels. This needs to begin within family life and continue through other social institutions. To this end, we recommend the responsible use of social media to enhance healthy and constructive communication, to amplify the message of peace and solidarity.
3. Nurture solidarity through spirituality, considering how traditional spiritual practices such as prayer, fasting, self-denial and almsgiving can be more deeply infused with an awareness of the needs of the wider world and of our call to be in solidarity with the suffering.
4. Widen the formation of clergy, members of religious communities and orders (both men and women), laity, pastoral workers, and students to foster empathy and to equip them with the Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity the best knowledge and the tools to work for a wounded humanity in cooperation with others.
5. Engage and support young people, whose idealism and energy can be an antidote to the temptation of cynicism, in the Endeavour to heal the wounded world of which we are part.
6. Create space for dialogues (as this document aims to do) that are embracing and inclusive. Learn from members of other religions about their motivation, principles and recommendations for working in interreligious solidarity, so that we may grow closer both in understanding and cooperation. Hold space for the marginalized to be heard and respected, offering places of belonging. Create platforms for different groups to be in each other’s company so that they can grow in love and understanding.
7. Restructure projects and processes for interreligious solidarity through an examination of ongoing projects, and existing strengths, to establish where these would gain from work in
cooperation with other communities, organizations or agencies. Restructure projects in a way that affirms the diversity in which we are created. Our work can only reflect the fullness of humanity if we resist the temptation to stay “amongst ourselves”. Serving a wounded world together makes neighbors of us all.
[1] For the full text, see: press.vatican.va/content :ServingWoundedWorld/_pdf.
In a world wounded by the Covid-19 pandemic and other wounds due to discrimination of all kinds from which many men and women of our time suffer, believers cannot stand idly (Mt 20, 6). Because of their faith in a compassionate God and following the example of the Good Samaritan (Lk 10: 25-37), they are invited to creative solidarity towards the excluded and the wounded of our humanity whose suffering has been amplified due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This encouragement to Christians emerges from a Document published by the Ecumenical Council of Churches (WCC) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (CPDI) entitled “Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity. A Christian Call to Reflection and Action During COVID-19 and Beyond”. The text already available in English was released on July 27, 2020. We publish here its seven recommendations[1].
We call upon all Christians to serve our neighbours, and to serve alongside them, taking into consideration the recommendations below.
1. Find ways of bearing witness to suffering, drawing attention to it, and challenging any forces that aim to silence or exclude the voice of the wounded and vulnerable among us, holding accountable the people and structures behind this suffering.
2. Promote a culture of inclusivism which celebrates difference as God’s gift, to counter all signs of exclusivism we see today in our societies at various levels. This needs to begin within family life and continue through other social institutions. To this end, we recommend the responsible use of social media to enhance healthy and constructive communication, to amplify the message of peace and solidarity.
3. Nurture solidarity through spirituality, considering how traditional spiritual practices such as prayer, fasting, self-denial and almsgiving can be more deeply infused with an awareness of the needs of the wider world and of our call to be in solidarity with the suffering.
4. Widen the formation of clergy, members of religious communities and orders (both men and women), laity, pastoral workers, and students to foster empathy and to equip them with the Serving a Wounded World in Interreligious Solidarity the best knowledge and the tools to work for a wounded humanity in cooperation with others.
5. Engage and support young people, whose idealism and energy can be an antidote to the temptation of cynicism, in the Endeavour to heal the wounded world of which we are part.
6. Create space for dialogues (as this document aims to do) that are embracing and inclusive. Learn from members of other religions about their motivation, principles and recommendations for working in interreligious solidarity, so that we may grow closer both in understanding and cooperation. Hold space for the marginalized to be heard and respected, offering places of belonging. Create platforms for different groups to be in each other’s company so that they can grow in love and understanding.
7. Restructure projects and processes for interreligious solidarity through an examination of ongoing projects, and existing strengths, to establish where these would gain from work in
cooperation with other communities, organizations or agencies. Restructure projects in a way that affirms the diversity in which we are created. Our work can only reflect the fullness of humanity if we resist the temptation to stay “amongst ourselves”. Serving a wounded world together makes neighbors of us all.
[1] For the full text, see: press.vatican.va/content :ServingWoundedWorld/_pdf.