Cardinal Koch: Peace Must Begin among the Churches

Christians must first rediscover peace within the Church and among the Churches if they are to contribute to peace in society, said Cardinal Kurt Koch, Prefect of the Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity.

“First, we must rediscover peace within the Church and among all the Churches. Ecumenism can help us live in balance amid diversity,” Cardinal Koch told Vatican News during the conference “Religions and Diplomacy,” held from September 28 to 30 at Palazzo San Calisto in Rome.

The conference marked the 30th anniversary of the International Association Political Charity and examined what religions can contribute to the search for peace and what role diplomacy can play in resolving conflicts. The opening session brought together diplomatic representatives accredited to the Holy See and Maria Angela Falà, former president of the Italian Buddhist Union.

Cardinal Koch also reflected on Europe’s historical, spiritual and cultural identity, beginning with the European Union, its institutions, common market and currency. He said Europe’s identity extends beyond its economic and political structures and raised the question of whether Europe can have a future if it loses awareness of its origins.

To illustrate Europe’s roots, he referred to three hills: Golgotha in Jerusalem, the Acropolis in Athens and the Capitoline Hill in Rome. In them, he saw an encounter between biblical heritage, Greek thought and Roman legal tradition, echoing Pope Benedict XVI’s 2011 address to the German Bundestag.

In the Greek heritage, Cardinal Koch highlighted the search for the good and the true. He said democracy needs law and a criterion of justice that do not depend solely on the will of the majority.

He also emphasized the Roman legal tradition and its contribution to the distinction between Church and State, which he described as essential to freedom of conscience.

For Cardinal Koch, Europe is called to pass on three principles: reference to God, the dignity of the human person and social responsibility. Human beings, he said, cannot be understood as isolated individuals because they realize their freedom through relationships with others.

Remembering Europe’s Christian roots, he clarified, does not mean seeking a privileged position for the Church, but recognizing a component of Europe’s cultural history and considering its vitality today.

Asked what contribution Churches can make when politics and diplomacy struggle to find solutions, Cardinal Koch first pointed to the Christian world itself.

The starting point, he said, must be the misunderstandings, differences and polarization present today, together with the need to “rediscover peace among all the Churches.”

Only on the basis of such relationships, he argued, can Christians help society seek unity and peace. The ecumenical journey can offer an experience of living together in which diversity does not prevent the search for unity.

Cardinal Koch concluded by invoking the Augustinian motto of Pope Leo XIV, In illo uno unum, a reference, he said, for the Catholic Church, ecumenism and also civil coexistence.