Panel: The Social Role of Religions and Faith Communities

Reyna I. Aburto is the Second Counselor in the General Presidency of the Relief Society of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I would like to start by expressing my deep gratitude to all who have organized and participated in this inspiring event, and, particularly, to those who participated in this panel with me:

To Mr. Luis Panessi, from ADRA, the Argentinian Adventist Agency for Development and Support Resources, sponsored by the Seventh Day Adventist Church, whose objective is to “serve humanity in order to help everyone live according to God’s will,” as it is driven by justice, compassion, and love [1].

To Reverend Luis Mussiett, who is the National Evangelic Chaplain of Gendarmerie in Chile and who does remarkable work in “supporting, watching over and rehabilitating people who […] have been detained or whose freedom has been taken away” [2].

To Mrs. Cristina Tobias‐Nabi from IRUSA, Islamic Relief USA, who serves children, orphans, and women by providing, among other things, clean water, education, health services, emergency response, food, and microfinances [3].

I represent The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter‐day Saints, whose humanitarian arm, Latter‐day Saint Charities, has as a purpose to “relieve suffering, foster self‐reliance, and provide opportunities for service” [4].

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Remarks on the Punta del Este Declaration on Human Dignity for Everyone Everywhere

Ana María Celis Brunet is a Professor of Law at the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile and Director of the UC Center for Law and Religion

In October 2021, thanks to the leadership of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies (ICLRS), we gathered four countries from the Southern Cone—Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile—in a Forum on Human Dignity and Religious Freedom. It seems particularly important to devote time to reflect on human dignity for everyone everywhere, which corresponds to the title of the 2018 Punta del Este Declaration.

The Declaration reflects the combined work of a group of people motivated by discussions initiated by Jan Figel, the former Envoy for Freedom of Religion for the non-European countries of the European Union, with the support of the ICLRS. This group seized the opportunity to build on and further develop religious freedom as a fundamental human right on the occasion of the seventieth anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, emphasizing the perspective of human dignity.

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Libertad religiosa: La base de una sociedad libre y justa

Elder D. Todd Christofferson es un Miembro del Cuórum de los Doce Apóstoles de La Iglesia de Jesucristo de los Santos de los Últimos Día.

Introducción

Estoy agradecido por esta oportunidad de dirigirme a ustedes. Es un honor para mí estar aquí entre tantas personas que tanto trabajan para construir sociedades mejores, para sacar a la gente de la pobreza y de la desesperanza y para proteger los derechos humanos fundamentales. Todos buscamos una sociedad más justa y libre en la que se valore a cada persona y cada uno tenga una oportunidad justa de prosperar. Gracias por todo lo que hacen al servicio de ese noble fin.

Hoy me dirijo a ustedes como Apóstol del Señor Jesucristo. Al hacerlo, afirmo la dignidad humana eterna de cada individuo como hijo amado de Dios. Afirmo que cada uno de nosotros tiene una naturaleza y un destino divinos. No somos meros accidentes cósmicos en un universo frío e indiferente. Somos conocidos y amados por un Dios omnisciente y omnipotente.

También declaro que cada uno de nosotros tiene el derecho de ejercer el albedrío moral: el derecho a elegir vivir nuestra vida de acuerdo con la verdad tal como la entendemos. De hecho, uno de los principales propósitos del gobierno es garantizar la libertad de todas las personas para ejercer su albedrío moral.

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