Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Vatican City (Agenzia Fides) – “ Diversity is a fact, a reality, but, as Pope Benedict XVI reminds us, it is also a positive factor, something good, and not a threat or a danger, ” says a Pastoral Message issued by the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Itinerant Peoples on the occasion of World Tourism Day 2009 to be celebrated 27 September 2009 on the theme “ Tourism - celebrating diversity ”.
The text underlines: "the experience of diversity belongs to human existence …. It is a progressive discovery". Today in this time of globalization, "cultures and religions approach each other more and more, and that in the heart of all cultures, an authentic desire for peace is emerging. On the other hand, we see misunderstandings, prejudices and deeply rooted misconceptions that raise barriers and nurture divisions. This is the fear that is in us of what is different, unknown. We must therefore do everything we can to transform discrimination, xenophobia and intolerance into understanding and mutual acceptance, through the roads of respect, education and open, constructive and binding dialogue". In this effort to engage in "constructive and sincere dialogue" the Church has an important role to play. Even tourism is an occasion for "dialogue and listening, inasmuch as it puts people in contact with other ways of living, other religions, other ways of seeing the world and its history". It is a an invitation not to withdraw into one’s own culture, but to be open and face different ways of thinking and living. "It should not be surprising, - the message continues - therefore, that extremist sectors and terrorist groups of a fundamentalist nature indicate tourism as a danger and an objective to destroy. Mutual knowledge – let us ardently hope – will help in building a more just, supportive and fraternal society". People today experience diversity also in the virtual world. However, "it is above all tourism understood as a physical mobility, that underlines natural, ecological, social, cultural, patrimonial and religious diversity. It also allows us to discover the work done together, cooperation among peoples, unity among human beings in the magnificent and disturbing diversity of its achievements." The Message warns against the dangers of tourism lacking an ethic of responsibility: It can happen, for example, that local residents make of their traditions a show for tourists, offering diversity as a commercial product, only for lucrative purposes."
In the concluding part, the Message recalls that "diversity lies in the mystery of God" and that God is also that wonderful force which is the principle of unity of all differences, seen as a “manifestation of the Spirit … given for some benefit (1 Cor 12:7). … believer, differences as a whole open ways by which one can draw near the infinite greatness of God. As a phenomenon having the possibility of celebrating diversity, tourism, for us, can be Christian, an open road to contemplative confession". The text concludes: "May the divine breath of life win over every xenophobia, discrimination, racism, and bring nearer those who are far away, through a contemplation of the unity/diversity of a human family blessed by God. It is the Spirit that gathers together in unity and peace, in harmony and mutual recognition. In Him, there is order and beauty in the seven days of creation. May He, too, enter the tormented history of humankind, thanks also to tourism" (S.L.) (Agenzia Fides 7/7/2009 – Righe 39; Parole 534)
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