Pope Benedict XVI called for talks on the status of the Catholic
Church in Iran in a letter to President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad released by
the Vatican press office on Thursday.
"I am... convinced that the
launch of a bilateral commission would be especially helpful in
addressing questions of common concern, including that of the juridical
status of the Catholic Church in the country," he wrote.
There are
around 10,000 Catholics in Iran who are free to worship but the
Conference of Iranian Bishops has not been granted official status.
The
letter, which was made public by the Vatican press office, was a reply
to a missive from Ahmadinejad last month in which the Iranian leader
called for stronger bilateral relations with the Vatican to fight
secularisation.
The Vatican and the Islamic Republic of Iran are both theocratic states.
In his letter, the pope also drew attention to the difficult conditions faced by some Christian minorities in the Middle East.
"In
some countries these communities face difficult circumstances,
discrimination and even violence and they lack the freedom to live and
publicly profess their faith," he said.
He said religious people could play a key role in spreading peace.
"When
the promotion of the dignity of the human person is the primary
inspiration of political and social activity... solid and enduring
foundations are created for building peace and harmony between peoples,"
he wrote.
"Peace is, above all, a gift from God, which is sought
in prayer, but it is also the result of the efforts of people of good
will. In this perspective, believers of every religion have a special
responsibility," he added.
Benedict's reply was presented to
Ahmadinejad in Tehran on Tuesday by Jean-Louis Tauran, a cardinal and
head of the Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, but its
contents were only made public on Thursday.
SIC: AFP/INT'L