The Vatican Secretary of State has been honoured for his efforts to forge peace through diplomacy, amid what he called a shared “sacred mission in a world crying out for healing and reconciliation”. Source: OSV News.
Cardinal Pietro Parolin received the Path to Peace Award at a gala dinner in New York on Monday, having addressed representatives at the United Nations headquarters to celebrate the election of Pope Leo XIV earlier that day.
The annual award is conferred by the Path to Peace Foundation, established in 1991 by then-Archbishop (and later Cardinal) Renato R Martino, who at the time was the apostolic nuncio and permanent observer of the Holy See to the UN.
The foundation works to support the Holy See’s UN mission through additional diplomatic humanitarian and peace-building activities that complement its efforts at the UN
Noting he was “deeply honoured” to receive the Path to Peace Award, Cardinal Parolin said he wanted “from the outset … to make clear that I accept it on behalf of the Pope and, above all, on behalf of the (Vatican) Secretariat of State, which works tirelessly for and on behalf of the Roman Pontiff to advance the cause of peace and justice in our world.”
The cardinal, who arrived in New York on the heels of Pope Leo’s May 18 papal inauguration, said the award was “a recognition of the Holy See’s supportive – though sometimes critical – relationship with the United Nations, and also a tribute to all those dedicated individuals who assist the Pope in his mission.”
He pointed to “a number of milestones in the enduring relationship between the Holy See and the United Nations,” including the 60th anniversary of St Paul VI’s visit to the UN, the 30th anniversary of St John Paul II’s second visit to the body, and the 10th anniversary of Pope Francis’s 2015 address to the UN General Assembly.
The Path to Peace Foundation is led by its president, Archbishop Gabriele Caccia, the Holy See’s permanent observer to the UN.
Among the independent nonprofit foundation’s efforts are spreading information on papal and other Catholic initiatives to cultivate peace; organising conferences and programs on the Church’s social teachings and cultural heritage; and promoting fundamental human rights by highlighting humanitarian crises in various parts of the world.
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Cardinal Parolin honored for ‘sacred mission’ to forge peace through diplomacy (By Gina Christian, OSV News)
