Vatican defends 'Right to Spread Message'

Amid the rising accusations against the Catholic Church in its aggressiveness in seeking souls in countries like India, the Vatican said, it has every right to spread its message and accept converts. A report by the Vatican noted that non–Catholics must never be forced to embrace the Christian faith.

The Vatican's doctrinal office issued guidelines on the missionary policy of the Roman Catholic Church, saying there is "growing confusion which leads many to leave the missionary command of the Lord unheard and ineffective."

"Often is it maintained that any attempt to convince others on religious matters is a limitation of their freedom," said the document issued by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

American Cardinal William Levada, the office head, told a Vatican news conference that "work of evangelization belongs to the very nature of the church ..." and that it was both the "desire and duty" of Christians to share the gift of faith.

It apparently restated its position that the "church severely prohibits forcing people to embrace the faith or leading or enticing them by improper technique; by the same token, she also strongly defends the right that no one be deterred from the faith by deplorable ill treatment."

Vatican's top Indian–born cleric, Cardinal Ivan Dias, said he believed the "vast majority" of Hindus – the largest religious group in India – would welcome the document.

"Most Hindus have a millenarian tradition of religious tolerance," Dias who heads Vatican's department in charge of missionary work, the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, said speaking at a news conference presenting the document.

Hindus "respect our honesty in declaring our beliefs about the founder (Christ) of our religion without attempting to dilute our message," Dias said.