Addresses U.N. on Religious and Cultural Pluralism
NEW YORK, MAY 11, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Human rights begin in small places, and close to home, said Mary Ann Glendon, president of the Pontifical Academy for Social Sciences.
Glendon, a Harvard law professor, made this statement Thursday to the U.N. General Assembly panel on religion in contemporary society entitled "Civilizations and the Challenge for Peace: Obstacles and Opportunities."
Her address, "Prospects for Cross-cultural and Interreligious Relations in Contemporary Society," examined the challenge of promoting mutual respect and tolerance in a multicultural world.
"In theory," the law professor said, "the accelerated movement of people and ideas in today's world might be expected to foster cooperation rather than conflict, mutual understanding rather than mutual suspicion."
Glendon said that "to some extent it has, especially as people get to know each other on a personal level."
"The problem," she added, "is how to seize the available opportunities and to reduce the incidence of misunderstandings, tensions and violence" fomented in the midst of religious and cultural pluralism.
The president of the pontifical academy said that a challenge for religious and cultural leaders is to motivate "their followers to meet others on the plane of reason and mutual respect, while remaining true to themselves and their own beliefs."
Glendon explained that often "religion has often been exploited for political purposes," but that a dialogue is also hindered due to "not only misunderstandings about the faith of others, but also a poor grounding in one's own faith."
She added that "another crucial task for leaders and educators is to find resources within their own traditions for promoting respect and tolerance, and to draw upon those resources as they transmit their traditions to their followers."
Mutual respect
Glendon, referring to the writings of Eleanor Roosevelt, said that "bringing human rights to life applies equally to creating a culture of mutual respect among peoples."
Roosevelt asked: "Where do human rights begin? In small places, close to home -- so close and small that they cannot be seen on any maps of the world. Unless these rights have meaning there, they have little meaning anywhere."
Glendon said that Roosevelt's "wise observation ... provides grounds to be cautiously hopeful about our present situation."
The pontifical academy official continued: "For, increasingly, religious and cultural pluralism is a fact of life. More and more people are getting to know members of other cultures and religions. Many, especially young people, are building lasting friendships -- in schools, neighborhoods, and workplaces.
"In 'small places' like these, people are beginning to move beyond mere tolerance. They are beginning to learn from one another, and to have their horizons enlarged by one another."
"As Pope John Paul II put it in his 1995 address to the United Nations, 'The 'difference' which some find so threatening can, through respectful dialogue, become the source of a deeper understanding of the mystery of human existence,'" Glendon explained.
She added, "To be sure, the path beyond tolerance will be strewn with obstacles. But there really is no alternative if human beings are to improve the chances for peace on our increasingly interdependent, yet conflict-ridden planet."
Code: ZE07051113
Date: 2007-05-11