Facts about the history of dialogue

Dialogue between Moslems and Christians is permanent and continuous. It has not stopped since the early Islamic period up till now, even though it has not gone on in a positive manner during all the epochs. The reasons for this have to do with occasional confrontations lying outside the realm of the two religions.

Dialogue has been manifest in environments where Moslems have lived together with other people belonging to heavenly revealed religions. Andalusia, under Islamic rule, topped all the countries where the atmosphere of coexistence and tolerance was prevalent. So were some of the parts of the Middle East, especially Jerusalem (which was a fertile land for such coexistence and tolerance). The same holds true for Morocco, which gained fame because of the good treatment it reserved for the Jews who were permitted to be free citizens (Ahlu Dimmah), since it is a well-known fact that it has never known any spread of Christianity even in limited numbers.

Dialogue was also represented in religious discussions that took place in intellectual councils - even in mosques - and in some writings. Some examples of these are what the Jewish scholar, Saâd Ibn Mansur Ibn Kamunah, wrote (in the 7th century of Hegira) concerning “the Reexamination of the Researches conducted on the Three Faiths : the Jewish, the Christian and the Islamic” in a published book where, it should be remarked, he attacked Islam. We should add what the Moslems have known during the days when scholastic theology flourished, and what they have written on religious faiths and creeds.

As for the recent historical period, Christianity was linked in the Moslems’ minds with colonial expansion, which used to encourage evangilization and fight Islam in many a colonized country.

In the contemporary phase, many quarters have taken dialogue initiatives. At their top, we find the Vatican, whose calls for dialogue have always been met with approval on the part of Moslems. However, this acceptance was accompanied with some caution in view of suspicion aroused by the weak stand taken by the Vatican concerning some questions that are of interest to Moslems, especially the usurpation (by Israel) of the Arab and Moslem rights in Jerusalem and Palestine and the war of extermination waged in Bosnia Herzegovina.

Amongst the most important reference points of dialogue, we would like to mention the following :

1. The Vatican’s declaration, made in 15 October 1995, concerning “The Church’s Relationship with Non-Christian Religions”. It was followed by a number of Islamic-Christian colloquia, the most outstanding of which are the first (held in Cordoba in September 1974), and the second (held in the same city, in March 1977), as well as the meeting that the Pope had, in 1986, with the representatives of various religions and faiths and during which prayers were recited and invocations of God were made  based on the beliefs that were represented therein.

What should retain our attention, concerning the activities of the Vatican, is that the papal office has created a council for dialogue between religions (Pontificum concilum pro dialogo inter religiones), which published a bulletin (entitled Bulletin) and a journal called Dirâsât Islâmiyya - Masîhiyya : Islamo - Christiano ("Islamic-Christian Studies : Islamo Christiano). Writings in Arabic, French and English are published in them.

In 1964, Pope Paul VI created a Secretariat for non-christians (Secretariatus pro non-christianis-vaticano) with a special department with the name Islam. This Secretariat has endeavored, during the sixties (67-69), to publish four books each of which is to be considered a guide for the manner in which can take place a meeting with non-Christians (the Buddists, the Hindus, the Moslems, and the adherents to African religions). It also published, in 1984, a study on “The Church’s stand toward the believers in other religions.” Furthermore, it appears that this Secretariat had a large domain of work in North Africa, and in Africa in general, which must have undoubtedly been geared to favor the missionary movement. In this regard, precaution is necessary so as not to let the field free for the Non-Moslems and let it be exploited in anything that is not good for the Moslems, in their own country.

2. The kind of activity engaged into by the Royal Academy for Islamic Civilization Studies (Al-Bayt Institution), in the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, along with various parties amongst which are : the Independent Commission for the Islamic-Christian Relations in Windsor (Great Britain); The Center for Orthodoxy in Champisi (Switzerland); The papal Council for Dialogue between Religions (The Vatican).

Meetings have taken place, under the patronage - and guidance - of his Highness Prince Hassan, of  the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, in Amman and the Vatican, some of which I was invited to attend. Amongst these meetings, mention should be made of the following :

- A conference on “Religious education in contemporary society” : held in the Vatican from 10 to 12 Jumâda I/1410 Heg (6-8 December 1989).

-  A conference on “Religion and the utilization of Earth’s resources”: organized also in the Vatican from 29 Dhi Al Qi‘dah to 2 Dhi Al-Hijjah (1416 Heg. (17-20 April 1996))

3. Some universities - in the East and the West - organize conferences in order to treat one of the religious aspects related to contemporary issues, like the one hosted by the Law Institute for Peace and Development, which is part of the French university of Nice ("Institut du droit de la paix et du développement - Université de Nice - Sophia Autiopolis). It organized, jointly with UNESCO, in December 1990, a conference on “Religions et guerre” ("Religions and War”), in which I participated and delivered a paper entitled “L’Islam: Religion de paix et jihad” (Islam: religion for peace and jihad”)

It should be pointed out that Alcala University in Madrid (Spain) organized, in the last part of November 1994, a meeting for the three religions to which I was invited. Its moto was: “The Meeting of the people of the Book : A commitment for peace”. It aimed at fostering joint reflection, the exchange of views, and the discussion of experiences that might reinforce peace initiatives in the world, in particular in the Middle East.

4- Efforts made by UNESCO : mention should be made of a meeting held in Barcelona in January 1994, from which the “Barcelona Declaration” resulted, and other meetings on “Dialogue between cultures” organized within the framework of the project “Ways of faith” - in which I was able to participate. They were successively organized in Rabat (19-23 June 1995 ; 18-22 June 1997)(1)

Within the framework of this project, a “Day of Reflection on Dialogue Between the three Monotheist Religions” was organized in Rabat, in 18 Shoual 1418 Heg (= 16 February 1998 A.D.), under the High Patronage of His Majesty the late King Hassan II, may Allah bless him. It ended with the issuance of a document calling for the establishment of a gathering place in Morocco, for reflection and action, to which will be convened representatives of the three monotheist religions who will seek to define activities targeting various factions and endeavor to encourage mutual understanding and movement toward the establishment of a culture of peace.”

5. The role played by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) in this domain, which is manifested in the numerous aspects of the strategy it devised and the programs issuing from it. This strategy starts by taking as a premise that (a) the Islamic culture has characteristics amongst which are globalism and universality, and (b) it has a credibility and a power stemming from its divine origin and its taking as bases - for its starting points, goals and values - human nature and principles pertaining to rights, justice and human dignity. This readily accepted by people with sound minds and no human will question its validity.

From this juncture, the Organization (ISESCO) sees in the possibility to have Islam and Christianity engage in a dialogue on opportunity to attain the goal of building a reciprocal confidence, laying out bridges for intellectual coexistence and to establish natural relations between the followers of the two religions. However, this goal must be tied in to the high interests of the Islamic Umma (Community), as it endeavors to focus on human values and to coordinate between the various Islamic parties that are concerned with dialogue.

In this regard, we must point to the participation of the director of the Islamic Organization (ISESCO), Dr. Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, in meetings organized for this purpose. An example is the colloquium organized by the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs in Egypt (13-16 July 1997) to study the following topic : “Islam and the West : past, present, future”. He presented a study on “The future perspective of dialogue between Moslems and the West”.(2)

No matter how many of these attempts(3) are made, which seek to firmly establish dialogue between Islam and Christianity - in fact, as can be observed in the case of some of these attempts, a complete tripartite dialogue englobing the three heavenly revealed religions - attention must be called to the fact that the Jews try, using various means, to solve their problems with the Christians even if this is done at the expense of these latter.

This is what they have done lately as concerns getting recognition for their claimed innocence from the spilling of Christ’s blood (Peace be Upon Him). Their purpose is to attain the same result with the Moslems concerning Jerusalem, so that they may establish leadership and hegemony over it and attain the influence that they covet, using as a point of departure the sacred capital. We must also call attention to the fact that the Moslems do not exclude the Jews from the dialogue. The proof for this is found in the many tripartie meetings that were held. However, the Moslems do not think that dialogue between the three religions is possible, let alone useful, as long as the legitimate right of the Arabs to Jerusalem and to Palestine is not recognized.