c. 1998 Religion News Service

UNDATED _ The”terrible wrongs”done to Protestants during the Reformation were acknowledged by the Roman Catholic bishops of England and Wales in a statement issued Thursday (Dec. 10) to mark the 50th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.

The bishops’ statement was one of a host of statements, ceremonies and events marking the anniversary. Participants ranged from President Clinton to the Dalai Lama.

At the Vatican, Pope John Paul II called the Declaration”precious”and one of the most important documents in the history of law while in Washington, President Clinton called adoption of the rights charter”an act of imagination and courage.”In Paris, the Dalai Lama lamented what he said was the worsening conditions of his fellow Tibetans under Chinese rule and at the United Nations, Secretary General Kofi Annan called the declaration”the moral core of all our efforts to promote peace and alleviate poverty.” In London, the statement by the Catholic bishops balanced consideration of the development of human rights from a theoretical perspective with the historical experience of England and Wales.”The Catholic community here knows very well what it is to be deprived of rights over a number of centuries,”the bishops said.”It cherishes the memory of its heroic martyrs and many more, both individuals and communities, who suffered in defense of the Catholic religion.”It must also be acknowledged that in the name of the Catholic religion terrible wrongs were done, for example, to Protestants at the time of the Reformation in Great Britain as elsewhere (although `human rights’ language would not have been used to describe these abuses),”the bishops said.”That the Reformation settlement and the suppression of the `old religion’ were accomplished largely by force is an explanation, but in no way a justification.” The bishops followed the expression of repentance for the 273 Protestant martyrs executed for heresy during the reign of Mary Tudor with Pope John Paul II’s statement earlier this year that”history also records events which constitute a counter-testimony to Christianity.” The bishops said Pope John Paul II has made human rights central to the church’s mission in the world. But, they said, their spelling out of a Catholic perspective on human rights should not be taken to assert the existence of an exclusive”Catholic position.””On the contrary, the Catholic church wishes to deepen its collaboration with those in other Christian churches with similar concerns, those of other faiths likewise, and secular bodies working in the human rights field, as it has learned from them too,”the British bishops said.

They said there were human rights failings _ they named abortion as a denial of the right to life _ which Catholics and others could see but to which the majority is still blind. There were also movements which the church could, after reflection, support, such as the trend towards abolishing capital punishment, the growing unwillingness to regard war as a legitimate means of defending a just international order, and the gradual acceptance that an international court with global jurisdiction is necessary to limit the claims of national sovereignty.

In Rome, meanwhile, John Paul praised the Declaration but deplored”grave and continued”violations of the principles it embodies.

In a message to the United Nations General Assembly, the pontiff called the declaration”one of the most precious and most significant documents in the history of law.”In proclaiming a certain number of fundamental rights that belong to all members of the human family, the declaration contributed decisively to the development of international law, challenged national legislation and permitted millions of men and women to live with more dignity.”Yet,”he said,”these fundamental rights, proclaimed, codified and celebrated, are still the object of grave and continued violations.” Through the 20 years of his papacy, John Paul has spoken out often in behalf of victims of human rights violations. The Vatican said Thursday the theme of his message for the 32nd World Day of Peace _ to be celebrated on New Year’s Day _ will be,”Respect for Human Rights, the Secret of True Peace.” In his message to the General Assembly, written in French, the pope singled out for criticism distortions of the principles of human rights and criticized those who apply only rights that fit their own convenience.

Another challenge to human rights comes from new forms of sovereignty that were not envisioned by the writers of the declaration, John Paul said, apparently referring to such organizations as multinational corporations, financial institutions and agencies like the World Bank and International Monetary Fund, which he has sometimes accused of ignoring the rights of the poor.”There are numerous international actors today, persons or organizations that, in reality, operate with a sovereignty comparable to that of a state and that influence the destiny of millions of men and women,”the pope said.

DEA END NOWELL