> MATERIALISM, VIOLENCE, PERMISSIVENESS THREATEN FAMILIES > > > VATICAN CITY, APR 1, 2004 (VIS) Cardinal Renato Martino, > president of the > > Pontifical Council for Justice and > Peace, spoke yesterday in Mexico City at the concluding > session of the Third World > Congress of Families, > denouncing materialism, violence and permissiveness as > being among the most > dangerous threats to families in the > world. > > > The object of this meeting, said a press release from > the council, is to > > create an intercultural and > inter-religious space for encounters, reflections, dialogue > and proposals to build > together a world suitable for > families. > > > Cardinal Martino said that the family is the key for the > future of > > mankind, and, in order to make society more > human and just, the family as societys basic institution > must be strengthened. He > said we must direct our > greatest efforts, our best ideas and refine our imaginations > and our creativity to > make this action of > strengthening the family more efficacious. > > > It is within the family, he underscored, that those forms > of anti-culture > > must be fought, those forms that > contradict the vocation inscribed in the hearts of all > human beings to a full > life, to fraternity and to > solidarity. He then remarked on the serious threats to > families, citing a > materialistic culture which places > things over people, the culture of violence which considers > violence as the only > way to produce a more just > society and the culture of permissiveness which challenges > rules on sexual > behavior, interpersonal relations > within the family and relations of authority. > > > Noting that it is impossible for societies today not > to be open to > > globalization, the cardinal said that it is > important, however, to educate to discernment and to defend > the riches of every > culture, avoiding what can place > these cultures in danger. A people that loses its cultural > identity becomes > fertile terrain for inhuman practices > and places its own future at risk. > > CON-IP/FAMILY/MEXICO:MARTINO VIS 040401 (300)
