Agra (AsiaNews) The International Day of Peace called by the United Nations "is an invitation to the global community to build peace day after day through practical action, not rhetoric. Peace involves mutual respect and confidence between peoples and nations and goes hand in hand with justice."
These were the words of Mgr Oswald Gracias, Archbishop of Agra and President of the Conference of Catholic Bishops' of India of Latin rite, as he shared some thoughts with AsiaNews about this day marked by the UN as dedicated to the concept of peace.
The bishop said: "Peace is something to be worked on, it just doesn't happen. From the point of view of religion, everyone who believes in God should be a peacemaker. India "has a particular situation. It has a rich legacy of harmony among different religious and ethnic groups and this must be protected."
Mgr Gracias said: "There is a close relationship in Catholic teaching between peace and justice that involves collaboration and binding agreements. Peace is the fruit of justice in all spheres of life, society and nations. On this day, we should seek to take away causes of injustice and disharmony and to understand the importance to rededicate our lives to building peace."
As for the international scene, "peace should be promoted with even greater urgency. Very often, calls for peace become rhetoric; this should not happen and world leaders should work on it seriously."
In Mumbai, the Justice & Peace Commission along with the Center for Study of Society & Secularism and the Vikas Adhyayan Kendra have organised a conference linked to the day.
The themes of the meeting are "Peace and Reconciliation Process - Post Communal Conflict in Gujarat" and "Perspectives on Peace and Conflict Resolution". Speakers include Jesuit priest Cedric Prakash and Dr AsgharAli.
