Hindus disappointed at lack of inter-faith references during Pope's visit

An international grouping of Hindus said today that it was disappointed that there was reportedly no mention of any interfaith dialogue with non-Catholic religious leaders during Pope Benedict's two-day visit to Malta.

Rajan Zed, spokesman for the Universal Society of Hinduism, in a statement in Nevada (USA), said that it appeared that the Catholic Church in Malta was not serious to share minority viewpoints and discuss issues of religious equality with minority religions/denominations, which was very sad.

He had earlier urged the Maltese Archbishop to organize a meeting of leaders of various religions and denominations with Pope Benedict XVI during this visit. Zed stressed that as a dominating majority in Malta, Catholics had a moral responsibility to take care of minority brothers/sisters from different faith/denomination backgrounds.