Catholic Commission for Social Justice
We have come to the end of another year. Tomorrow, December 31, my sister, Kamala Ramdeen, Attorney-at-Law and the eldest of Balgobin and Ruby Ramdeen’s sevenchildren, will celebrate her birthday.
She says that as she grows older she realises more and more the importance of thanking God for life. In spite of all the many social ills that beset us, let us thank God for His many gifts.
“The world must be educated to love Peace, to build it up and defend it” – Blessed Paul VI
On Friday, September 21, the world will observe the International Day of Peace. The theme this year is: The Right to Peace—The Universal Declaration of Human Rights at 70.
The UN General Assembly has declared this as “a day devoted to strengthening the ideals of peace, both within and among all nations and peoples”. UN Secretary-General, António Guterres says: “It is time all nations and all people live up to the words of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which recognizes the inherent dignity and equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human race. This year marks the 70th anniversary of that landmark document.”
Today, the last day of 2017, we have an opportunity to review the past year and to plan for 2018.
It was on December 28, 2016 that my father, Balgobin Ramdeen, passed away in hospital in London. My siblings and I were angry as we felt that he died because of hospital negligence. I quarreled with God. His funeral was held on January 5, 2017 and I had to deliver the Eulogy.
God calmed me as I reflected on what a privilege it was that God had placed my siblings and me in Pa’s care. I was not going to let my anger steal the joy of having had such a wonderful father to teach and guide me. My dear mother, Ruby Ramdeen (nee Manning), had died in 1995. Together, Ma and Pa raised us well.
“The world must be educated to love Peace, to build it up and defend it.” – Pope Paul VI, 1968
Today, January 1, we celebrate the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God and also World Day of Peace. This year, Pope Benedict XVI’s Peace Message to the world focusses on the theme: Educating Young People in Justice and Peace. You can access the full text on CCSJ’s website and in CCSJ’s Parish Link Newsletter. Here is a summary of his message.
Today I continue to share some extracts from Pope Benedict XVI’s Peace Message for 2011: “Religious Freedom, the Path to Peace”.
At the press conference when the Peace Message was released, Cardinal Turkson, President of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace said: “Religious freedom does not imply that all religions are equal. Nor is it a reason for religious relativism or indifferentism. Religious freedom is compatible with defence of one’s religious identity against relativism, syncretism and fundamentalism, which are all abused forms of religious freedom.”