Pope says travel opens road to dialogue, understanding

Published: 2005-07-20

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- International travel can open up new roads to dialogue and understanding among people, said Pope Benedict XVI. The traveler should be motivated by "the desire to meet other people, respecting their individual, cultural and religious differences," he said in a message for World Tourism Day. Visitors "must be ready to be open to dialogue and understanding" and behave in a manner that conveys "respect, solidarity and peace," he said in the written message released July 20 by the Vatican. The message, dated July 16, was sent on the pope's behalf by the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Angelo Sodano, to the head of the Pontifical Council for Migrants and Travelers, Cardinal Stephen Fumio Hamao. World Tourism Day is sponsored by the U.N. World Tourism Organization and is celebrated each Sept. 27 to promote the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values.

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