More details confirmed for interfaith meeting during papal visit

Published: 2008-03-05

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI will meet with representatives of the Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Jain and Hindu faiths during an April 17 interfaith meeting as part of his April 15-20 U.S. visit. The meeting, which has the theme "Religions Working for Peace," will include a papal address, greetings from interfaith leaders, and the presentation of symbolic gifts by a member of each faith community. About 200 leaders have been invited to attend the meeting, which is to take place at the Pope John Paul II Cultural Center in Washington, across the street from the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and The Catholic University of America, which are other stops on the pontiff's Washington itinerary. "The cry for peace in our world calls for religious bodies to come together," said Auxiliary Bishop Richard J. Sklba of Milwaukee, chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Ecumenical and Interreligious Affairs. "This meeting denotes the Holy Father's belief in the need for religious bodies to stress the goal for peace which lies at the heart of all religions. It exemplifies what must happen all over the world," the bishop said in a statement released March 4 along with more details about the meeting.

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