Buddhists and Christians for a ‘unarmed and disarming’ peace
The Vatican Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue issued a message of good wishes to the world’s Buddhists on the occasion of the feast of Vesak. May goodness break “the cycle of suspicion” and open “paths where none seemed possible,” it reads. May “prayer, contemplation, and inner transformation” be “deepest sources” for a peace that believers can build together rather than be “passive observers”.
Vatican City (AsiaNews) – The Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue issued a message on the occasion of the feast of Vesak, which commemorates the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment, and passing.
In it the Vatican department expresses hope that “Buddhists and Christians may increasingly become witnesses of this disarming peace – one that heals wounds, restores relationships, and opens new horizons for humanity.”
Signed by the dicastery’s president, Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, and its secretary, Monsignor Indunil Janakaratne Kodithuwakku Kankanamalage, it underlines the call inherent in this celebration “to renew the path of wisdom, compassion, and peace.”
The two prelates quote the message of Pope Leo XIV issued for 1 January 2026, saying that peace “has the gentle power to enlighten and expand our understanding; it resists and overcomes violence. Peace is a breath of the eternal: while to evil we cry out ‘Enough,’ to peace we whisper ‘Forever’” (Message for the LIX World Day of Peace, 1 January 2026).
“In our time, however, we cannot ignore the shadows weighing upon the world. Wars, violence, rising ethno-religious nationalism, and the manipulation of religion continue to wound our common humanity,” write the two prelates. “In a world that appears increasingly fragile and at times marked by a troubling sense of regression, the call to peace becomes ever more urgent.”
“It is here that our spiritual traditions can offer a vital contribution,” the two note. “Goodness is truly disarming; it breaks the cycle of suspicion and opens paths where none seemed possible. At their best, our traditions invite us to purify our hearts of hostility, to transcend boundaries, and to recognize one another as members of a single human family.”
The message cites the Buddha: “‘Hatred is never appeased by hatred; by non-hatred alone is hatred appeased. This is an eternal law” (Dhammapada 5). And again: ‘Let none deceive another or despise any being… Let none through anger or ill will wish harm upon another’ (Sutta Nipata 1.8 - Metta Sutta).”
These words, the statement says, should be read together with Jesus’s call to his disciples to "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew 5:44) and with the blessedness of peacemakers (Matthew 5:9).
Indeed, “Both traditions converge in pointing toward a peace that is lived – one that disarms hearts before it disarms hands,” Card Koovakad and Mgr Kodithuwakku write.
For the two, religious leaders are called “to be authentic partners in dialogue and true agents of reconciliation. Together with all believers, we are invited to become artisans of peace – not passive observers, but courageous witnesses capable of fostering encounter, healing wounds, and rebuilding trust.”
Ordinary people and believers, they add, also have a duty to “promote peace, challenge injustice, and urge those in positions of authority not to inflame division but to pursue dialogue over confrontation. We must also guard against becoming complicit through silence or fear.”
To this end, “Each community is thus called to grow as a place where hostility is overcome through encounter, where justice is practiced, and where forgiveness is cherished.”
To be unarmed and disarming, peace must draw sustenance from its “deepest sources: prayer, contemplation, and inner transformation. It is a peace lived daily – in gestures of kindness, in patience, in the refusal of hatred and vengeance, and in the courage to hope. For peace is not an illusion or a distant ideal; it is a real possibility already placed within our reach, waiting to be welcomed and shared.”
For this reason, the Catholic community offers its best wishes to Buddhists around the world: “May your celebration of Vesak be filled with serenity and joy, and may it inspire all of us to walk together on this path.”
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02/05/2022 15:23
