Pope Francis on Wednesday, the first
full day of his visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous
Muslim-majority country, warned authorities and civil society
against religious extremism and intolerance, which he said
distorted religion through "deception and violence".
"In order to favour a peaceful and constructive harmony which
can ensure peace and join forces to defeat imbalances and
pockets of poverty that still persist in some areas of the
country, the Catholic Church wishes to increase inter-religious
dialogue", the pontiff said in his speech to politicians and
religious leaders.
"In this way, it will be possible to eliminate prejudice and to
contribute to the growth of a climate of reciprocal confidence
and respect, indispensable to fight extremist and intolerance
which - by distorting religion - try to impose their views by
using deception and violence".
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