THE PRINCETON DECLARATION OF
THE THIRD WORLD ASSEMBLY

1979

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Preamble

Peace is Possible: Our Conviction

The Third Assembly of the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP III), meeting at Princeton in
1979, is the continuation of an important heritage. The
first World Conference on Religion and Peace at Kyoto
in 1970, and the second at Louvain in 1974, revealedon the international level a basic unity of purpose andgoal amid diversities of religious belief, and widened
the pathway of inter-religious cooperation for peace. In
spite of the scars of religious strife in some parts of theworld, we perceive with joy a growing ferment of mutual understanding and respect among the followers of
the great religions. We learned in the first two assemblies
of WCRP that, while maintaining our commitment toour respective faiths and traditions, we may respect andunderstand the devotion of others to their faiths andreligious practices.

World community, built in love, freedom, justice, andtruth, is another name for peace. It is the goal of all our
striving. It is not a utopian dream. Despite the temptation to despair as competition for dwindling resources
grows more fierce, as centers of economic power intensify their exploitation, and as stockpiles of nuclear weapons grow, we have come together in a spirit of hope. In
our various religions, we know that we are members of
one human family. Sustained and motivated by the spiritual power by which we all live, we believe that there isan alternative to violence. We believe that peace is possible.

We pledge ourselves to continue to grow in our mutual understanding and our work for peace, justice, andhuman dignity. The Assembly is aware that we are approaching not only the turn of the century, but also aturning point in human history, with the survival ofworld civilization at stake. Therefore, we chose as ourtheme: Religion in the Struggle for World Community.
We rejoice in the sign of world community which thisconference represents in gathering 354 participants of
Buddhist, Christian, Confucianist, Hindu, Jain, Jewish,
Muslim, Shinto, Sikh, Zoroastrian, and other religions
from 47 countries around this common theme. We
know that forces which negate human dignity are strong
and all around us. We see the menace of deadly nuclear
weapons and desperate national insecurity. Technological and economic power often exploits and excludes thepoor of the world. Political power often represses dissidents and denies human rights. Human greed also destroys the natural environment on which we all depend.
We realize that our religious insights and actions are only
one contribution to the struggle against these forces. We
therefore meet with humility but with urgency to face,with the resources of our traditions and beliefs, the danger before us and the world.

This is the hope we would share, not only among ourselves, as followers of our various religions, but with thewhole world. We dedicate ourselves to the task of becoming more effective agents of building community.
We call upon believers and all human beings to share thishope and to join a commitment to work for its realization.
We believe that, as a religious people, we have a special
responsibility for building a peaceful world community
and a special contribution to make.
On the one hand, we realize that far too often thenames of our various religions have been used in warfare and community strife, and that we must work harderagainst this. We cannot deny that:

The practices of our religious communities are often adivisive force in the world;
Too often we conform to the powers of the world, evenwhen they do wrong, rather than confronting those powers
with the word of the teachings of our religions;
We have not done enough as servants and advocates ofsuffering and exploited human beings; andWe have done too little to build inter-religious understanding and community among ourselves on the local level
where prejudices run strong.

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On the other hand, we have been brought to a newawareness, in this assembly, of the deep resources weshare for making peace, not only among ourselves, but
in the world.

In this confidence, we turn to particular areas where
peace and world community are at stake.

Adhering to different religions, we may differ in our
objects of faith and worship. Nevertheless, in the way
we practice our faith, we all confess that the God or thetruth in which we believe transcends the powers and divisions of this world. We are not masters, but servants
and witnesses, always being changed and disciplined inworship, meditation, and practice by the truth which we
confess.

A. A Just International Economic Order

We all acknowledge restraint and self-discipline in acommunity of giving and forgiving love as basic to human life and the form of true blessedness.
We are all commanded by our faiths to seek justicein the world in a community of free and equal persons.
In this search, conscience is given to every person as amoral guide to the ways of truth among us all.
We believe that peace in world community is not
only possible but is the way of life for human beings onearth, as we learn it in our prayers or meditation and by
our faiths.
These convictions we share. Therefore we can go further and share a common confidence about the fruits ofreligious witness in the world. We trust that:

The power of active love, uniting men and women in
the search for righteousness, will liberate the world from all
injustice, hatred, and wrong;
Common suffering may be the means of making us realize that we are brothers and sisters, called to overcome thesources of that suffering;
Modern civilization may someday be changed so thatneighborly good will and helpful partnership may be fostered; andAll religions will increasingly cooperate in creating a responsible world community.

Mobilization for Peace: Our Struggle

It is an affront to our conscience that 800 million
people in the developing world still live in poverty, that
hundreds of millions more are destitute because they
are physically unable to work, and that 40 per cent of
the world’s population cannot read or write. The gapof economic disparity between the developed and thedeveloping countries has widened during the past decade. In view of the stress laid by all the great religions
on social and economic justice and the right of all men
and women to have a share in the earth’s bounty, we callon religious people throughout the world to work fora just and equitable economic order where dignity andhumanity in harmony with nature will not be denied toany person.
Such a new international economic order of growing
justice and equity would stimulate all nations to achieve
viable and self-reliant national economies, capable ofparticipating in international trade on a basis of equality rather than dependence. In order to establish thisnew vision, there must be the political and social will
to promote balanced economic growth worldwide andto allocate its benefits to the abolition of poverty, themeeting of all basic human needs, and the creation ofequitable trade relations between the industrial and thedeveloping countries. We call upon religious people towork for the elimination of the structures of economic
and social injustice in their respective countries and tomobilize governmental public opinion in favor of antipoverty programs. We call on religious institutions witheconomic resources at their command to work for social
amelioration, prevention of destitution, and succor of
the poor.
Our sense of religious responsibility impels us to reaffirm that social justice and democratic participation indecision-making are essential to true development. We
are of the view that suitable measures should be taken at
the national and international levels to ensure that the

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transnational corporations and enterprises of all economic systems do not wield undue economic, political,
and social power in the host country.

tions convention against the use of all weapons of mass
destruction, declaring that such use is a crime against
humanity.

All the wealth of the universe is a common heritage
held in trusteeship for all. We advocate the rights of yetto-be born generations to planetary resources that havebeen wisely developed rather than wastefully exhausted.

In order to reduce reliance on arms, we proposethat the mechanisms of international security throughthe United Nations be strengthened, that all nations
implement unconditionally all the resolutions of the Security Council, that the present concept of balance ofpower be replaced by a system of collective security inaccordance with the United Nations Charter.

B. Nuclear and Conventional Disarmament
We believe that a major concern for the human family
on earth today is the looming danger of nuclear annihilation, either by design or accident. We acknowledge that,in spite of SALT I and II, nuclear arsenals are continuing to grow, imparting a sense of urgency to the need ofa worldwide movement to outlaw war and all weaponsof mass destruction.
We regard the SALT II treaty between the U.S.A. andthe USSR as an encouraging development for nuclear
disarmament and hope that it will be ratified so that
SALT III negotiations may soon begin. It is the dutyof organized religions to oppose the proliferation of
nuclear weaponry, the arms competition between the
U.S.A. and the USSR, and the expansion of the conventional arms race throughout the world. Nuclear powers
must not use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against
nuclear or non-nuclear States.
A global moral and religious campaign which will say
NO to ANY KIND OF WAR BETWEEN NATIONSOR PEOPLES is our call to governments, religious
groups, and all men and women of conscience and faith.
This movement must work toward disarmament andnonviolent means of maintaining security. As a prerequisite, it is essential to create an atmosphere of trust andfoster a spirit of conciliation between peoples.
In pursuance of these objectives, we propose that thefollowing steps be immediately taken: (1) a cessation of
all testing, research, manufacture, spread, and deployment of nuclear weapons and other instruments ofmass destruction; (2) a comprehensive nuclear test-ban
treaty; (3) effective methods of verification to ensure theimplementation of these measures; and (4) a United Na

We express our profound concern over the massive increase in military spending, which has rocketed
to $400 billion a year. It seems a cruel irony that, while
millions sleep with hungry stomachs, nations and theirgovernments devote a great part of their resources toarmaments, ignoring the demands of social justice. We
therefore appeal to the members and leaders of our respective communities to use every political and moral
influence to urge a substantial reduction in the current
military expenditures of their own nations and the utilization of the funds thus saved for development aroundthe world.
C. Human Rights
We reaffirm our commitment, made at Kyoto andLouvain, to the U.N. Declaration of Human Rights, andwe deplore the denial of human rights to any individual
or community. We pledge our support to all societies, organizations, and groups sincerely struggling for humanrights and opposing their violation. We condemn religious discrimination in any form, and urge the United
Nations to adopt a Declaration and Covenant for the
Elimination of Intolerance and Discrimination Basedon Religion or Belief. We uphold the right of citizens
to conscientious objection to military service. We urge
religious bodies to press their governments to ratify andenforce all the U.N. declarations, conventions, and covenants for the protection and promotion of human rights.
All the religions to which we owe allegiance enjoin us toprotect the weak against the strong, to side with the oppressed against the oppressor, and to respect human life,
freedom of conscience and expression, and the dignityof all people. We support the U.N. declaration and

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convention against racism and racial discrimination andurge all governments to adhere to them. The actions of
the United Nations against apartheid should be implemented by all States, organizations, and individuals.
Noting the WCRP III coincides with the United Nations sponsored International Year of the Child, we reaffirm our belief in the United Nations General Assembly’s 1959 declaration that humanity “owes the child thebest it has to give” and that the child should be brought
up “in a spirit of understanding, tolerance, friendshipamong people, peace, and universal brotherhood.” We
appeal to religious people throughout the world to help
promote and work for the adoption of social, economic,
and population policies in every country so as to assure a better and a brighter future for every child. It is
profoundly important that faith be actively involved inthis movement of religion for peace, and inter-religious
gatherings of youth should be encouraged.
We affirm that all human beings are born free and for
freedom that they are equal in dignity and rights, andthat any discrimination on grounds of sex is incompatible with human dignity. We are convinced that practices,prejudices, or laws that prevent the full participation of
women along with men in the political, economic, cultural, and religious life of their countries are morally indefensible and should be eliminated.
D. Environment and Energy Crisis
The earth is threatened increasingly by human misuse of the environment in quest of material prosperity.
We are endangering future generations by our depletionof nonrenewable natural resources, our pollution of air
and water with chemical and radioactive wastes, and ouroverexploitation of the soil in many parts of the world.
An energy crisis stares us in the face. With diminishing supplies, of oil, nations and individuals will have to
make sacrifices, develop alternative - if possible renewable - sources of energy, and even change their lifestyles.
The resources of all religions are needed to cultivate respect for the natural world in which we live, conservation of its resources, and a style of human life that is inharmony with all of nature. (The Assembly took note of
the views of some of the participants that there should
be no continuation of the development of

nuclear power). The children of the earth must conserve
our planet’s limited resources so that the bounty of theearth may not be wasted.
E. Education for Peace
The world’s religious bodies must undertake major
educational programs to increase mutual appreciationof all peoples and cultures and foster a commitment tothe values of peace. Our efforts so far have not been
sufficient. We therefore rededicate ourselves to the education of children, youth, and adults, to the training of
our religious leaders, and to the promotion of values ofpeace and understanding in our conduct in personal andpublic life.
Ultimately, peace and justice move toward the salvation and wholeness of all humanity, and flow from themas well. We, as followers of great religions, should be thechannels through which spiritual power can flow for thehealing of the world. We confess that we have not been
worthy of this high calling, but we pledge ourselves here
anew to be its faithful servants and witnesses. World
peace in world community, with justice for all, is possible. We believe that the faith and hope which brought
us together in this Assembly have been nurtured andstrengthened during our time together. If this faith andhope were to be shared in the same way through thewhole life of the religions to which we belong, then atlast, a new force would be brought to bear in human affairs and a new era would begin in the world. We shallpray or meditate, as well as work, that this new era may
be realized.

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