56. Dialogue, however, cannot be
based on religious indifferentism, and we Christians are in duty bound, while
engaging in dialogue, to bear clear witness to the hope that is within us (cf. 1
Pt 3:15). We should not fear that it will be considered an offence to the
identity of others what is rather the joyful proclamation of a gift meant
for all, and to be offered to all with the greatest respect for the freedom of
each one: the gift of the revelation of the God who is Love, the God who
"so loved the world that he gave his only Son" (Jn 3:16). As
the recent Declaration Dominus Iesus stressed, this cannot be the
subject of a dialogue understood as negotiation, as if we considered it a
matter of mere opinion: rather, it is a grace which fills us with joy, a
message which we have a duty to proclaim.
The Church therefore cannot forgo her missionary activity among the peoples
of the world. It is the primary task of the missio ad gentes to announce
that it is in Christ, "the Way, and the Truth, and the Life" (Jn 14:6),
that people find salvation. Interreligious dialogue "cannot simply replace
proclamation, but remains oriented towards proclamation".40 This
missionary duty, moreover, does not prevent us from approaching dialogue with
an attitude of profound willingness to listen. We know in fact that, in the
presence of the mystery of grace, infinitely full of possibilities and
implications for human life and history, the Church herself will never cease
putting questions, trusting in the help of the Paraclete, the Spirit of truth
(cf. Jn 14:17), whose task it is to guide her "into all the
truth" (Jn 16:13).
This is a fundamental principle not only for the endless theological
investigation of Christian truth, but also for Christian dialogue with other
philosophies, cultures and religions. In the common experience of humanity, for
all its contradictions, the Spirit of God, who "blows where he wills"
(Jn 3:8), not infrequently reveals signs of his presence which help
Christ's followers to understand more deeply the message which they bear. Was
it not with this humble and trust-filled openness that the Second Vatican
Council sought to read "the signs of the times"?41 Even as
she engages in an active and watchful discernment aimed at understanding the
"genuine signs of the presence or the purpose of God",42 the
Church acknowledges that she has not only given, but has also "received
from the history and from the development of the human race".43
This attitude of openness, combined with careful discernment, was adopted by
the Council also in relation to other religions. It is our task to follow with
great fidelity the Council's teaching and the path which it has traced.
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