wfn.org | Religious leaders sign "Commitment to Global Peace"

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Note #6178 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

1-September-2000
00316

Religious leaders sign "Commitment to Global Peace"

by Religion News Service

NEW YORK -- More than 1,000 religious leaders from around the world were
invited to sign a "Commitment to Global Peace" at the historic Millennium
World Peace Summit of Religious and Spiritual Leaders here Aug. 31.
	Religious leaders gathered for the summit were not be required to sign the
statement, but organizers hoped most of the assembled leaders will endorse
its principles. The statement includes 11 promises to work for global peace,
education and the abolition of nuclear weapons, among other things.
	"We accept that men and women are equal partners in all aspects of life and
children are the hope of the future," the statement reads in its
introduction. "Our world is plagued by violence, war and destruction, which
are sometimes perpetrated in the name of religion."
	The statement continues, saying, "Building peace requires an attitude of
reverence for life, freedom and justice, the eradication of poverty, and the
protection of the environment for present and future generations."
	Signers will pledge to "appeal to all religious communities and ethnic and
national groups to respect the right to freedom of religion, to seek
reconciliation, and to engage in mutual forgiveness and healing."
	In addition, signers will "practice and promote in our communities the
values of the inner dimension of peace, including especially study, prayer,
meditation, a sense of the sacred, humility, love, compassion, tolerance and
a spirit of service ..."
	The summit, which opened at the United Nations with an address by U.N.
Secretary-General Kofi Annan, has drawn fire from critics who said
organizers bowed to Chinese pressure to exclude the Dalai Lama, the
spiritual leader of the world's 15 million Tibetan Buddhists and a Nobel
Peace Prize winner.

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