Acta Benedicti Pp. XVI 613

appeal to the Romans to acknowledge that, as members of Christ's body, we

belong to each other 3 and to live in respect and mutual love. In that spirit I

greet the ecumenical representatives who honour us by their presence. This

year marks the 450th anniversary of the Reformation Parliament, but also

the 100th anniversary of the World Missionary Conference in Edinburgh,

which is widely acknowledged to mark the birth of the modern ecumenical

movement. Let us give thanks to God for the promise which ecumenical

understanding and cooperation represents for a united witness to the saving

truth of God's word in today's rapidly changing society.

Among the differing gifts which Saint Paul lists for the building up of the

Church is that of teaching.4 The preaching of the Gospel has always been

accompanied by concern for the word: the inspired word of God and the

culture in which that word takes root and flourishes. Here in Scotland, I

think of the three medieval universities founded here by the popes, including

that of Saint Andrews which is beginning to mark the 600th anniversary of its

foundation. In the last 30 years and with the assistance of civil authorities,

Scottish Catholic schools have taken up the challenge of providing an integral

education to greater numbers of students, and this has helped young people

not only along the path of spiritual and human growth, but also in entering

the professions and public life. This is a sign of great hope for the Church, and

I encourage the Catholic professionals, politicians and teachers of Scotland

never to lose sight of their calling to use their talents and experience in the

service of the faith, engaging contemporary Scottish culture at every level.

The evangelization of culture is all the more important in our times, when

a "dictatorship of relativism" threatens to obscure the unchanging truth

about man's nature, his destiny and his ultimate good. There are some

who now seek to exclude religious belief from public discourse, to privatize

it or even to paint it as a threat to equality and liberty. Yet religion is in fact

a guarantee of authentic liberty and respect, leading us to look upon every

person as a brother or sister. For this reason I appeal in particular to you, the

lay faithful, in accordance with your baptismal calling and mission, not only

to be examples of faith in public, but also to put the case for the promotion of

faith's wisdom and vision in the public forum. Society today needs clear

voices which propose our right to live, not in a jungle of self-destructive

and arbitrary freedoms, but in a society which works for the true welfare

3 Cfr. Rom 12:5. 4 Cfr. Rom 12:7.