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last twenty-four years – the world is overwhelmed by an unprecedented human
crisis with the flight and plight of hundreds of thousands of refugees from the
Middle East, especially from Syria.
We are nowadays facing a worldwide economic crisis and its social
consequences are evident on a global scale. Ultimately, we regard this crisis as a
“crisis of solidarity.” Yet, our Church has historically sought to build bridges of
interfaith dialogue, ecological awareness and the culture of solidarity between
diverse faiths and cultures, as well as between humanity and the natural
environment. We are convinced that the future of humanity is related to the
establishment of the culture of solidarity.
Solidarity is a term that contains the very essence of social ethos,
embracing the pillars of freedom, generosity and justice. It includes the
struggle for a just society and the respect for human dignity beyond any
division or discrimination of social class, economic status or ethnic origin. We
are convinced that the future of humanity is closely related to a culture of
solidarity. In many ways, we can speak of a crisis of solidarity and a crisis in the
natural environment.

The crisis of solidarity and the ecological crisis

The most serious contemporary threat against such a culture of solidarity is the
prevailing economy – what we might call, the fundamentalism of market and
profit. We are not qualified economists, but we are convinced that the purpose
of economy should be for the service of humankind. It is not by coincidence
that the terms economy and ecology share the same etymological root. They
contain the Greek word oikos (household). Oikonomia (or “economy”) involves
the care or management of our household; oikologia (or “ecology”) implies the
study and appreciation of our home; and, by extension, oikoumene (or our
“ecumenical” imperative as churches and faith communities) demands
maintaining and sustaining our world as a place where we can all live in
harmony and justice.
True faith does not release us from our responsibility to the world. On
the contrary: it strengthens us to give a witness of reconciliation and peace.
Thus, we reject any form of “economic reductionism,” the reduction of the
human being merely to Homo oeconomicus. In brief, we resist the transformation
of society into a gigantic market, the subordination of the human person to the
tyranny of consumerism, as well as the identification of “being” with “having”
in society.

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