ADDRESS OF THE HOLY FATHER PAUL VI
TO THE REPRESENTATIVES
OF THE DIFFERENT RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS OF JAPAN

Wednesday, 26 July 1978

Dear friends,

it is always a joy to have visitors from Japan. And today we are especially pleased to welcome the representatives of the different religious traditions of your land.

We know that during these days you have had discussions with our Secretariat for Non-Christians and with other departments of the Holy See on subjects of vital importance for humanity: peace and the promotion of a religious spirit among people. We are grateful to you and invoke upon your efforts the blessing of God, who is the Father of us all.

You are aware of our own interest in these ideals, in which we have indeed a common interest. We are glad to note the priority that you give to the question of the purification of the heart, which is a key solution to every problem. One of the statements of our Lord Jesus Christ that is recorded in the Gospel says: “If your eye is sound, your whole body will be full of light” (Matth. 6 , 22). We are therefore convinced that there is no solution to the problems of freedom, social justice, integral development, and above all peace, unless the heart and the intentions of individuals are pure. And may God the Most High assist you in this search for a pure, noble and generous heart.

We ask you to take back our greetings and our blessing to your families, to your communities and to all the noble people of Japan.