During his audience with French Muslims and representatives of other faiths,on Thursday, November 3, the Pope urged: “May it never happen again that the religions, because of the conduct of some of their followers, convey a distorted message, out of tune with that of mercy”
"Sadly, not a day passes that we do not hear of acts of violence, conflict, kidnapping, terrorist attacks, killings and destruction. It is horrible that at times, to justify such barbarism, the name of a religion or the name of God himself is invoked. The Pope stressed this during a private audience with a group of representatives of different religions in the context of the Jubilee. “May it never happen again that the religions, because of the conduct of some of their followers, convey a distorted message, out of tune with that of mercy,” Francis urged. The audience was attended amongst others, by heads of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), who thanked the Pope for his commitment to severing the link between religion and terrorism.
The Holy See Press Office reported that the audience was attended by “around 200 members of different religions (Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and others), engaged in works of charity and mercy”.
Mercy is at the heart of the Holy Year, which draws to an end this coming 20 November, the Pope said in his speech. The religions are called to this way of life, “in order to be, particularly in our own day, messengers of peace and builders of communion, and to proclaim, in opposition to all those who sow conflict, division and intolerance, that ours is a time of fraternity”. The theme of mercy, the Pope said, “is familiar to many religious and cultural traditions, where compassion and nonviolence are essential elements pointing to the way of life”. Francis quoted Tao-Te-Ching, who said that “death is hard and stiff; life is soft and supple”, to underline that “bow[ing] down with compassionate love before the weak and needy is part of the authentic spirit of religion, which rejects the temptation to resort to force, refuses to barter human lives and sees others as brothers and sisters, and never mere statistics”.
In an aside on the term “mercy”, the Pope emphasised that “the very word “mercy” is a summons to an open and compassionate heart. It comes from the Latin word misericordia, which evokes a heart – cor – sensitive to suffering, but especially to those who suffer,” which is linked to “Arabic and Hebrew, to the root RHM, which also expresses God’s mercy, has to do with a mother’s womb,” while “all too often, sad to say, we forget (scordare in Italian), our hearts grow heedless and indifferent”.
Yet, “before the great riddle of evil that tests every religious experience, we find the most amazing aspect of merciful love,” Francis explained. “In today’s ever more hectic and forgetful world, which leaves so many men and women behind as it races on, breathlessly and aimlessly, we need the oxygen of this gratuitous and life-giving love. We thirst for mercy and no technology can quench that thirst.” “Forgiveness is surely the greatest gift we can give to others, because it is the most costly. Yet at the same time, it is what makes us most like God. Mercy extends also to the world around us, to our common home, which we are called to protect and preserve from unbridled and rapacious consumption. “May this be the path we take,” The Pope Said. May we reject the aimless paths of disagreement and closed-mindedness. May it never happen again that the religions, because of the conduct of some of their followers, convey a distorted message, out of tune with that of mercy. Sadly, not a day passes that we do not hear of acts of violence, conflict, kidnapping, terrorist attacks, killings and destruction. It is horrible that at times, to justify such barbarism, the name of a religion or the name of God himself is invoked. May there be clear condemnation of these iniquitous attitudes that profane the name of God and sully the religious quest of mankind. May there instead be fostered everywhere,” Francis said, “the peaceful encounter of believers and genuine religious freedom.”
The Pope was greeted, amongst others, by the leaders of the French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM), headed by President Anouar Kbibech. They “thanked the Pope for his commitment to severing the link between religion and terrorism”. The journey undertaken by the representatives of CFCM was organised by the Bishop of Devy, Mgr. Michel Dubost, who is also the French Episcopal Conference’s person in charge of relations with Islam. The aim of the visit was to ease the unstable situation created after the jihadist attacks last summer, as French newspaper Liberation reports. The representatives ended their visit today by lunching with the President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran.
