Temuco, Chile: The Vatican’s top official for interreligious dialogue, Cardinal George Jacob Koovakad, has highlighted the Holy See’s decades-long commitment to fostering peace through dialogue, collaboration, and bridge-building among religions, cultures, and nations.
Speaking at the International Congress: Pathways to Peace – Religions and Cultures in Dialogue at the Catholic University of Temuco, the Prefect of the Dicastery for Interreligious Dialogue laid out the Church’s peace mission, rooted in truth, justice, mercy, fraternity, and humanitarian outreach.
Citing the Pope’s role as Pontifex literally “bridge-builder” Cardinal Koovakad traced a timeline of papal appeals for peace, from Saint Paul VI’s 1965 address to the United Nations to Pope Francis’ warnings about a “third world war fought piecemeal” and Pope Leo XIV’s 2025 appeal to “build bridges through dialogue and encounter.”
He also referenced landmark Church initiatives, including Pacem in Terris, the annual World Day of Peace, the historic 1986 interfaith meeting in Assisi, and recent papal writings such as Laudato si’, Fratelli tutti, and the Document on Human Fraternity.
Cardinal Koovakad noted the Holy See’s diplomatic reach relations with 184 nations, the EU, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, and its UN observer role emphasizing its work on human rights, social justice, and global development. He highlighted mediation efforts, support for the UN Sustainable Development Goals, and active participation in climate change negotiations.
Interreligious and intercultural dialogue, he said, remains a priority through collaborations with the World Council of Churches, bilateral exchanges, and joint projects promoting mutual respect, cultural understanding, and environmental stewardship.
Concluding his address, the Cardinal stressed that peace is “a continuous construction project” and a shared duty of all humanity, not merely a task for governments or religious leaders. True peace, he said, can only flourish when rooted in the dignity of every person and the pursuit of the common good.