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DIALOGUE-CONTEMPLATION (CORRECTED) Jul-14-2005 (320 words) xxxi
Vatican official says contemplation leads to interreligious dialogue
By Catholic News Service
ASSISI, Italy (CNS) -- When followers of different religions contemplate the actions of God, they begin to recognize that all that is good in any religion is the work of the spirit of God, a Vatican official said.
Archbishop Michael Fitzgerald, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, said in a message to a group of Catholics, Hindus and Muslims that "a contemplative attitude is at the basis of interreligious dialogue."
The group was participating in a July 13-17 meeting in Assisi sponsored by the Italian chapter of the Monastic Interreligious Dialogue, an effort founded by Catholic monks.
The July meeting focused on "the contemplation of God in Hinduism, Benedictine monasticism and Sufism," the mystical tradition of Islam.
In his message to the meeting, Archbishop Fitzgerald said, "The theme of contemplation is important not only because it favors the discovery of the riches of various traditions, but also because a contemplative attitude is at the basis of interreligious dialogue.
"It helps us see the action of God not only in the hearts of individuals, which is very important, but also in the traditions, customs and rites of the various religions," he said.
"All that is true, good and noble in these traditions can be attributed to the action of the spirit of God," the archbishop said. "Recognizing this leads to greater respect for one another."
Benedictine Father Cipriano Carini, leader of the Italian dialogue group, told the Catholic newspaper Avvenire that the meeting would look at the practice of contemplation as well as the style and structuring of a contemplative life in the various traditions.
Father Carini told the newspaper that, while monks generally are seen as fleeing the world, contemplation in Christianity, Hinduism and Sufism involves an "active abandonment" in prayer and praise, allowing "the soul to become aware of God present and acting in it."
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