'Politicians must promote development'

Pope Benedict said in his message for Lent that the Catholic Church has a duty to demand that world leaders promote development, fight hunger and act ethically as they face "the terrible challenge of poverty."

In the six-page message issued yesterday, he also said religious freedom should be a basic right in any country that was seriously interested in the development of its people.

He added that Christians had made "many mistakes" in the course of history, suggesting that the Church should never try to supplant the role of politicians, and warned against a "growing secularisation of salvation."

The message is issued yearly to give Catholics a theme for reflection during the 40-day period before Easter when they are asked to consider the less fortunate, fast and give alms. Lent starts on March 1 this year. "Moved like Jesus with compassion for the crowds, the Church today considers it her duty to ask political leaders and those with economic and financial power to promote development based on the dignity of every man and woman," he said. He said everyone had to face the "terrible challenge of poverty" which had become ever more urgent and clear today.

Pope Benedict said an "important litmus test" for the success of a country's development efforts was religious liberty, a possible reference to China, which the Vatican and various human rights group have criticised over religious freedom issues.

He said this was not only freedom to worship but also to contribute "authentic religious values" to their society. "These are the criteria by which Christians should assess the political programmes of their leaders," he wrote.

The Pope, echoing some of the themes of his encyclical released last week, praised the work of Catholic hospitals, schools, and humanitarian initiatives around the world because they looked after both social as well as spiritual needs.

Globalisation of good

"These charitable activities point out the way to achieve a globalisation that is focused upon the true good of mankind, and hence the path towards authentic peace," he said.

But he reminded Catholics that no organised initiative could compare to the joy and fulfilment found in one-to-one charity with those less fortunate materially or spiritually.

The part of the message about mistakes made by Christians in the past appeared to be a reference to Liberation Theology, which used Marxist analysis in the 1980s to promote a class struggle to achieve social changes.

He said some Catholics had succumbed to the temptation to "first improve this world and only afterwards turn their minds to the next."

As the Vatican's doctrinal chief before his election as Pope last April, Pope Benedict oversaw the censure and discipline of Latin America's Liberation Theologians.