Collective Action for Dialogue and Social Harmony

Organized by: Catholic Bishops' Conference of India (CBCI) in collaboration with the Agnel Region of the Society of Pilar and Bharitya Sarva Dharama Sansad

          We Spiritual leaders representing various faiths who have come together on 5 April 2018 at Ravindra Bhavan, Margao Goa greet the people of our country from this beautiful land of sand sunshine, peace and harmony

          We congratulate the Agnel Region of the Society of Pilar, as they celebrate sixty years of their first institution in Bandra Mumbai, and forty years of their presence in Vema-Goa, Vashi Mumbai and Delhi

          Mahatma Gandhi had told us " claim that human mind or human society is not divided into watertight compartments called social, political and religious, All act and react upon one another" Today more than ever before our Beloved motherland India needs to reflect upon these wise words of the Father of the Nation

          Indians have lived together for ages in a country where unity in diversity has become a model for the world People of different communities speaking different languages, practising different faiths, coming from diverse regions and cultures and subcultures have built and developed this beautiful country India India which as a great number of youin, has many aspirations, and the most important one is the passionate desire to live in peace and harmony

          It is in this background that we wish to express our deep worry and concern at the way forces of hate and division are striving to polarise the Indian Polity We are deeply distressed at the communal tensions that we have seen in recent days in West Bengal, Bihar, Rajasthan and other states. We strongly condemn those who are seeking to inject the portion of hatred into our society

           We reiterate every indian has his dignity and respect and the night to decide what one oals, to marry the person of one's choice, to choose the education one selects and the freedom to practice whatever faith one wishes to profess We take strong exception to anyone taking control of these individual decisions be it on the part of the State or by so called cultural organizations. No one is to be categorized as anti-national or non-patriotic based on his religion, region or belongingness to a community

          We condemn all violence, lynchings and killings and request the authorties to take strong and speedy action against those involved in anti-social acts. We are very concerned about attacks on educational institutions and places of worship. We denounce in unequivocal terms the attacks this week on three Catholic Churches in Rourkela, Onssa at a time when the peaceful Christian Community was celebrating their feast of Joy, Easter

          We vehemently denounce mobs that go around taking law and order into their hands and appeal that the Constitutional norms and articles be respected and implemented in letter and spint. We are saddened to see that in our society caste still plays a very important role and we demand that our Dalits be given their rightful place in society. We emphasise that the rights of the tribals, the marginalized, the workers, and the poor be upheld and protected

         We call upon all men and women of goodwill to stand up for social harmony Our country cannot progress simply with slogans and promises. A nation can progress only when its people live with each other as brothers and sisters, where egoism gives place to selfiessness, hate gives way to love, peace replaces violence. We wish to promote the way of love for as Martin Luther King Jr. said, 'Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate. only love can do that"

                                    God bless India, Jai Hind.

Most Rev. Theodore Mascarenhas

Secretary General of the Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI)

Sushil Goswamy Maharaj President,

Bharply, Sarv Dhorm Sansad

Imam Umer Ahmed Ilyasi

Chief Imam of India, President, All India Imam Association

Paramjit Singh Chandok Chairman,

Bangla Sahib Gurudwara

Lamuwa Vivek Muni

President International Mahavir Jain Mission

Bikku Sanghasena

Founder

Manobodhi International Meditation Centre, Ladakh