Life Is A Precious Gift, But We

Even Today, After The Second Failure Of Another World War, Perhaps One Can Speak Of A Third War, One Fought Piecemeal, With Crimes, Massacres, Destruction.

During My Visit To The Philippines, I Wanted In A Particular Way To Meet With Young People, To Listen To You And To Talk To You. I Want To Express The Love And The Hopes Of The Church For You. And I Want To Encourage You As Christian Citizens Of This Country To Offer Yourselves Passionately And Honestly To The Great Work Of Renewing Your Society And Helping To Build A Better World.

The Church In The Philippines Is Called To Acknowledge And Combat The Causes Of The Deeply Rooted Inequality And Injustice Which Mar The Face Of Filipino Society, Plainly Contradicting The Teaching Of Christ.

Legal Systems, At Both The National And International Level, Are Therefore Required To Recognize, Guarantee And Protect Religious Freedom, Which Is A Right Intrinsically Inherent In Human Nature, In Man's Dignity As A Free Being, And Is Also An Indicator Of A Healthy Democracy And Cone Of The Main Sources Of The Legitimacy Of The State. Religious Freedom ... Favors The Development Of Relationships Of Mutual Respect Between The Different Confessions And Their Healthy Collaboration With The State And Political Society, Without Confusion Of Roles And Without Antagonism.

For Us Christians, Love Of Neighbour Springs From Love Of God; And It Is Its Most Limpid Expression. Here One Tries To Love One's Neighbour, But Also To Allow Oneself To Be Loved By One's Neighbour. These Two Attitudes Go Together, One Cannot Be Exercised Without The Other. Printed On The Letterhead Of The Missionaries Of Charity Are These Words Of Jesus: "as You Did It To One Of The Least Of These My Brethren, You Did It To Me". Loving God In Our Brethren And Loving Our Brethren In God.