Building bridges in Kazakhstan
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Elder Paul B. Pieper of the Seventy led a delegation from the Church July 1-2 to the Third Congress of World and Traditional Religions held in Astana, Kazakhstan. The First Congress was organized by the President of Kazakhstan, Nursultan Nazarbayev, in 2003 in an effort to build greater dialogue and cooperation among world religions to combat world problems, particularly terrorism in the wake of the events of September 11, 2001. The conference is triennial.
The invitation from the Kazakhstani government to participate in the Congress is the first for the Church and is significant because it recognizes the growing understanding of government and political leaders of the worldwide stature of the Church. This is particularly significant in the countries of the former Soviet Union where the Church is new and relatively unknown.
The Third Congress of World and Traditional Religions was attended by distinguished leaders including Kazakhstani and Israeli Presidents Nursultan Nazarbayev and Shimon Peres, and leading clerics and scholars from Jewish, Muslim, Christian and other religious traditions. Elder Pieper was accompanied by Area Seventies Elder Alexander Manzhos and Elder Dmitry Marchenko from the Europe East Area and Sister Mariana Gurina, the director of Public Affairs for the Church in Kazakhstan.
Elder Pieper was asked to present remarks at a working session entitled "Solidarity, Particularly in the Period of Crises." His comments emphasized that the Church follows the teachings of Jesus Christ. Elder Pieper said, "We tried to make sure that participants realized that we believe in Christ, that we're Christians and that our actions and approach to dialogue and cooperation with other faiths is based on His teachings and not on political expediency or other factors." He reiterated the Church's Article of Faith that requires us to respect the religious beliefs of others and indicated our willingness to reach out in friendship to all faiths and cooperate to achieve good when we can find areas of common interest.
The members of the delegation had opportunities to converse informally with many delegates from other faiths and to explain some of the fundamental beliefs of the Church. There were also opportunities to speak with the press covering the event and to express impressions of the Congress and its efforts.
After the Congress concluded, Elder Pieper participated in a meeting with Kazakhstani President Nazarbayev, together with U.S. Ambassador to Kazakhstan Richard E. Hoagland and LDS Congressman Eni Faleomavaega, D-American Samoa. Elder Pieper thanked President Nazarbayev on behalf of the First Presidency for having the vision to organize the Congress and for the Church's opportunity to participate. He also explained some of the basic teachings of the Church to the Kazakhstani president.
"It was an honor to represent the First Presidency and the Church members generally," Elder Pieper said. "I am hopeful that the friendships that were begun at the Congress will provide the basis for increased understanding and cooperation between the Church and others of good will in the future."
