Pope: May human fraternity guide us beyond hatred and war

By Alessandro Di Bussolo and Felipe Herrera-Espaliat - Abu Dhabi

"If it is encouraging to see that the path of dialogue, friendship, and mutual esteem which began in Abu Dhabi five years ago continues to bear fruit," in many parts of the world, the effects of "lack of fraternal solidarity" cause "environmental destruction" and "social degradation" that lead to "immense suffering for a large number of our brothers and sisters." It is essential, therefore, to "draw attention to the principles that can guide humanity through the dark shadows of injustice, hatred, and war into the brightness of a world community marked by those values that we see manifest in the varied efforts of this year’s awardees.“

These words are at the core of Pope Francis‘ message marking the fifth anniversary of the Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, signed on February 4, 2019, in Abu Dhabi, together with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed Al-Tayyib.

Message to participants in the "Majlis of Human Fraternity" 

On the International Day of Human Fraternity proclaimed by the United Nations in 2021, the Pope addressed his message to Judge Mohamed Abdelsalam, Secretary-General of the Zayed Prize for Human Fraternity and the Muslim Council of Elders, on the occasion of the "Majlis of Human Fraternity." In Arabic "Majlis" means assembly; it is an event held at the House of Abrahamitic Family in Abu Dhabi, where political, social, and religious leaders of different faiths gather to promote dialogue and exchange ideas, aiming to unite forces to implement the principles and values embodied in the Document on Human Fraternity.

Presidents, Nobel laureates, and religious leaders

The message from Pope Francis was read by Cardinal Miguel Angel Ayuso Guixot, Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue and member of the Higher Committee for Human Fraternity, in the presence of personalities such as the President of Timor-Leste and Nobel Peace Prize laureate José Ramos Horta, Ouided Bouchamaoui, Nobel Peace Prize laureate in 2015 with the Tunisian National Dialogue Quartet, Ma'ruf Amin, Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia, and the Minister of Tolerance and Coexistence of the UAE, Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan.

Intrinsically connected as brothers and sisters

The Pope reiterated his gratitude to Ahmad Al-Tayyib, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, and to Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the United Arab Emirates, "for their vital support of initiatives aimed at promoting the values of fraternity and social comradeship founded on the truth that all human beings are not only created equal but are intrinsically connected as brothers and sisters, children of our one Father in heaven." He then congratulated the three winners of the Zayed Prize, now in its fifth edition: the Indonesian organizations Nahdlatul Ulama and Muhammadiyah, the Egyptian heart surgeon Magdi Yacoub, and the Chilean Sister Nelly León, emphasizing that the large number of candidates who applied " is yet another sign that the values celebrated and promoted on this day are resonating throughout our human family."

Values that inspire the Zayed Prize winners 

The new and "bright" global community that Pope Francis yearns for is characterized " by those values that we see manifest in the varied efforts of this year’s awardees. These include tolerant love for those who are different, a genuine care for the poor and sick, especially children, and a desire to assist the rehabilitation of prisoners and their reintegration into society.“

"All of the joint recipients, in their own distinctive ways, cast important light on the path to greater social solidarity and fraternal love," he added.

Openness to the Father of all

However no individual or human effort alone, the Pope noted, "can advance progress on this journey." In fact, the Zayed Prize itself reminds us, and here the Pontiff quotes his encyclical Fratelli tutti, that " without an openness to the Father of all, there will be no solid and stable reasons for an appeal to fraternity… For ‘reason, by itself, is capable of grasping the equality between men and of giving stability to their civic coexistence, but it cannot establish fraternity."

The Pope went on to pray that all those who participate in the International Day " may be encouraged not only by the example of the awardees’ good works but also by the religious insights and beliefs that inspired in them such generosity of heart." His final wish is that all brothers and sisters who are suffering " May they know the closeness and concern of people of faith around the world."

Zayed prize-giving ceremony

The commemorative events for the fifth anniversary of the signing of the Abu Dhabi Document will conclude on Monday, February 5, with the delivery of the Zayed Prize 2024 for Human Fraternity to the three winners, at the Founder’s Memorial in Abu Dhabi.