Dialogue, Key to Peace: A world summit of religious leaders in Moscow

The first three-day world summit of Religious Leaders was held in Moscow from July 3–5, 2006 with 200 representatives of various faiths: Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, Hindus and Shintoists from 49 countries. Russian Orthodox Patriarch Alexi II and the Interreligious Council of Russia organized the forum seeking to highlight the importance of religion in the fight against terrorism and armed conflicts, and in protecting moral values.

It was a unique opportunity to meet and discuss universal spiritual problems. There was a high level of consensus among the religious communities represented that has significant implication for people around the globe.

A fruit of their meeting was the adoption of the document “Message of the World Summit of Religious Leaders” addressed to the heads of nations, to religious communities and to all people of good will. It recommended solutions to key problems of the world from the religious perspective to the G-8 political leaders whose meeting was to follow at the end of July in St. Petersburg.

Among the issues explored were: methods of combating terrorism and extremism; the role of the media; environmental and public health issues; family and human life issues; gender equality; moral upbringing of young people; poverty reduction; nonproliferation of weapons of mass destruction; and dialogue between civilizations.

President Vladimir Putin opened the Summit, acknowledging that the voice of spiritual leaders reaches out to millions of people. The Chief Rabbi of Russia, Berel Lazar, added that religious leaders bear a responsibility as messengers to bring a spirituality to the people that shapes their way of life, their morality and ideology. Lack of spirituality gives rise to intolerance and xenophobia, which leads to terrorism. The contribution of religious leaders has national and worldwide significance.

Pope Benedict XVI sent a large delegation to the Summit for which Patriarch Alexi II expressed his gratitude “for the high value he placed on the idea of holding an interreligious summit and for wishing success to all the participants’ work…. It reflected the positive development of relations between the Russian Orthodox Church and the Roman Catholic Church.”

On a previous occasion during a visit with the ambassador of Macedonia, Pope Benedict shared his commitment to the ideals that were later expressed in the Summit document. He said: “Dialogue between cultures is an indispensable building stone of the universal civilization of love for which every man and woman longs…. I encourage you and your citizens [of Macedonia] to affirm the fundamental values common to all cultures; common because they find their source in the very nature of the human person…. In this way the quest for peace is consolidated allowing you to dedicate every human and spiritual resource to the material and moral progress of your people in the spirit of fruitful cooperation with neighboring countries.”

The message of the World Summit of Religious Leaders concluded by making a special appeal to all believers. “We urge them to respect and accept one another regardless of their religious, national and other differences. Let us help one another and all well-intentioned people in building a better future for the entire human family.”