Download PDF version of this page25/09/2008
Press release
Issued by the Catholic Communications Network
Cardinal Tauran calls for Christians and Muslims to unite in upholding the dignity of the family
Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, has issued a greeting to Muslims from the Holy See, to mark the end of Ramadan.
In his message called: Christians and Muslims: Together for the dignity of the family, the Cardinal describes the family as the ‘fundamental cell of society’, reminding us that the development of the human person and society as a whole depends on the healthiness of the family:
“How many people carry, sometimes for the whole of their life, the weight of the wounds of a difficult or dramatic family background? How many men and women now in the abyss of drugs or violence are vainly seeking to make up for a traumatic childhood? Christians and Muslims can and must work together to safeguard the dignity of the family, today and in the future.”
Archbishop McDonald, Chairman of the Department of Dialogue and Unity at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales and Chairman of the Bishops’ Committee for Other Faiths, has commended the Cardinal’s greeting in a letter to the Muslim community. In his letter he wrote:
“This year, the Cardinal focuses on an issue of great concern to both our religions and indeed the whole of humanity namely the dignity of the family. The fostering of family life is of fundamental importance for the human community and it is vital that as far as possible, Christians and Muslims bear united witness to its importance”.
Cardinal Tauran's greeting: