Just as the word religion is defined (from the Latin re-ligare: unite or re-unite) as a community of persons united by a faith, a practice or form of worship, so may religion itself be considered. Of course, this community must be united by a search for “the divine,” and defined by its manner of confronting the problems of human life. That is why in the history of religions much is said of the experience and personal contact with “the sacred.”

An elevated concept of the dignity of the individual, the knowledge and recognition of something called “sacred” are not exclusively Christian but are the essence of all religions. This was recognized by Vatican Counsel II itself in its document Dignitatis Humanae concerning religious faith and purity.