President Harada Meets with Pope Francis
On May 10, Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada met with Pope Francis, head of the Roman Catholic Church, at the Apostolic Palace in Vatican City, Rome, Italy. The two exchanged warm greetings at the start of the meeting, which lasted for 30 minutes. President Harada conveyed his hope that, in these tumultuous times, religions that seek peace can transcend their differences and work together based on a shared love for humanity. Pope Francis thanked President Harada for these sentiments.
On behalf of the Ikeda family, President Harada then conveyed appreciation for the condolences extended by Pope Francis through Soka Gakkai Italy on the passing of SGI President Daisaku Ikeda.
President Harada expressed his commitment to continue working together toward human happiness and world peace, and Pope Francis voiced his concern over current global challenges, stating that war signifies defeat and must be eradicated.
On the topic of the abolition of nuclear weapons, President Harada introduced the initiatives of the Soka Gakkai toward this end under the leadership of President Ikeda. Pope Francis voiced his strong criticism of nuclear weapons and commended these efforts.
Following his meeting with Pope Francis, President Harada met with Cardinal Mauro Gambetti, president of the Fratelli tutti Foundation. Kimiko Nagaishi, Soka Gakkai women’s leader, and Hirotsugu Terasaki, SGI director general for Peace and Global Issues, also joined the meeting.
In November 2017, SGI Vice President Hiromasa Ikeda, along with other delegates, also had an audience with Pope Francis at the Clementine Hall of the Vatican’s Apostolic Palace. Their meeting was part of an international symposium on “Prospects for a World Free from Nuclear Weapons and for Integral Disarmament.” The symposium, held in cooperation with other organizations including the SGI (Soka Gakkai International), was organized by the Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development and hosted at the New Synod Hall in Vatican City.