Love is stronger than injustice and violence, says Vatican official

Published: 2006-10-17

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Hindus and Christians should work to demonstrate to the world that love is stronger than injustice, violence and terrorism, a top Vatican official said. "It is urgent and necessary that believers of different religions manifest jointly to the world that hatred can be overcome by love," Cardinal Paul Poupard said in a message released Oct. 16. One example of the brutal violence that marks contemporary society can be seen in the recent bomb attacks in Mumbai, India, that left nearly 200 dead and 800 injured, the cardinal said. About 90 percent of the world's 1 billion Hindus live in India. Cardinal Poupard, who heads the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue, made the comments in the Vatican's annual message to Hindus celebrating Diwali, the festival of light, which culminates Oct. 21 this year. The cardinal said the Hindu festival, which celebrates the victory of light over darkness and good over evil, strikes themes that Pope Benedict XVI developed from a Christian perspective in his 2005 encyclical, "Deus Caritas Est" ("God Is Love").

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