Blog by-the-Sea

Catholic and Muslim Declaration from Cairo Meeting

The Vatican Press Office today posted an important joint declaration regarding Catholic-Muslim dialogue.  The declaration is signed by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and Professor-Sheikh Abd al-Fattah Muhammad Alaam, President of the Committee for Dialogue Al-Azhar.

The Final Declaration of the Annual Meeting of the Joint Committee for Dialogue of the Permanent Committee of Al-Azhar for Dialogue Among the Monotheistic Religions and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (Vatican), written in English, is the product of a meeting in Cairo on Monday and Tuesday of this week.

The declaration mentions positions that the two religions hold in common.  It strongly condemns offensive cartoons, attacks against Islam, and other attacks against religion.  It calls on religious symbols to be respected.  Among its recommendations are a statement that all religions respect the dignity of the human person; a recommendation to foster true respect for religions, their holy books, and religious symbols; an appeal to the mass media to avoid letting freedom of expression become a pretext for offending religions, and to encourage mutual acceptance; to encourage an exchange of views on matters of mutual concern; and to assess these recommendations at future meetings.

Vatican-Muslim Diplomatic Efforts

From May 8 to 27, the Pontifical Gregorian University Foundation and the Jacques Maritain Institute will provide a course for 20 diplomats from predominantly Muslim countries concerning the Vatican's international policies.  A news story about the course appeared yesterday in La-Croix, by Céline Hoyeau with AFP.

The course will be in Rome from May 8 to 20, and in Turin from May 21 to 28.  Its purpose will be to provide diplomats and embassy representatives to the Vatican with formal instruction concerning the Holy See's international politics.  The 20 representatives who plan to attend the course include those from Algeria, Albania, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Egypt, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Kuwait, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Morocco, Syria and Turkey.  A diplomat from Montenegro has also been invited because of the large Muslim population of that country, although the majority of that nation's population is Orthodox.  However, diplomats from Oman, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and Tunisia turned down the invitation to attend.

The objective of the course will be to better enable the Muslim diplomats to act as mediators who can explain Vatican policies to their countries in a difficult political context, and to build a better understanding between Christian and Muslim faiths.  According to the Jacques Maritain Institute website, the idea for the course grew from a visit of chancellors from Catholic universities to Cairo in 2005 on the invitation of the League of Arab Universities.   The president of the Pontifical Gregorian University said the its Foundation had the idea for the project well before controversy arose over the Pope's lecture at Regensburg last fall.

The Vatican has intensified its efforts at interfaith dialogue with Muslims, and political diplomacy with predominantly Muslim countries, in recent months.  On Friday, May 4, Pope Benedict XVI met for half an hour with the former president of Iran Mohammad Khatami.  At the time of the Pope's lecture in Regensburg, Khatami was the first major Muslim leader to call on people to read the lecture before they criticized it.  The Vatican statement about the meeting said that they discussed the situation facing Christians in middle eastern countries.

Asia News has articles about the Pope's meeting with President Khatamihere and here.  There is also a short article from Zenit   
 

The Pope Reflects on His Journey to Turkey

Pope Benedict spoke about his journey to Turkey during today's General Audience.  Responding to the talk about his bowing his head in prayer in the Blue Mosque, he said he was then praying to the “one Lord of heaven and earth, merciful father of all mankind”.  The Pope prayed that God may "make this apostolic journey fruitful and animate across the world the Church’s mission to announce to all nations the Gospel of truth, peace and love."

Asia News has an article.  Full translations are available from Zenit and the Vatican.

According to Asia News, the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I also spoke about the Pope's journey in a speech delivered last Sunday, saying:

"“We are sure that the voyage of the Holy Father to the Ecumenical Patriarchate will bear fruits for dialogue between Christian churches, especially between the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, and more generally to inter-religious dialogue. This real improvement in our ties will contribute to peace on our planet.”

Muslim Leaders Accept Benedict XVI's Explanation of His Lecture

Asia News reports that 38 Muslim leaders have issued an open letter accepting the Pope's explanation of his lecture at the University of Regensburg.  In their open letter, they made this comment about past forced conversions. which their letter calls violations of Islamic tenants:

“History shows some Muslims have violated Islamic tenants concerning forced conversions and the treatment of other religious communities, but history also shows these are by far the exception.”

The letter also comments upon what the Muslim leaders consider to be positive aspects of the lecture, and states that Christians and Muslims must work together for "peace in an increasingly connected world."

The Holy Father's Meeting with Muslim Ambassadors

Vatican News Service has published the Pope's address today to representatives of 21 Muslim nations who accepted his invitation to a meeting at Castel Gandolfo.  He spoke in French, which is the diplomatic language of the Holy See.  The address is also available in Arabic, English and Italian translations on the same page, along with Cardinal Poupard's words in French.  According to AFP, the meeting lasted about 30 minutes.  Afterward, some of the envoys expressed satisfaction with the meeting.   

Here is the Vatican's English translation in its entirety:

Dear Cardinal Poupard,
Your Excellencies,
Dear Muslim Friends,

I am pleased to welcome you to this gathering that I wanted to arrange in order to strengthen the bonds of friendship and solidarity between the Holy See and Muslim communities throughout the world. I thank Cardinal Poupard, President of the Pontifical Council for Inter-Religious Dialogue, for the words that he has just addressed to me, and I thank all of you for responding to my invitation.

The circumstances which have given rise to our gathering are well known. I have already had occasion to dwell upon them in the course of the past week. In this particular context, I should like to reiterate today all the esteem and the profound respect that I have for Muslim believers, calling to mind the words of the Second Vatican Council which for the Catholic Church are the Magna Carta of Muslim-Christian dialogue: "The Church looks upon Muslims with respect. They worship the one God living and subsistent, merciful and almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, who has spoken to humanity and to whose decrees, even the hidden ones, they seek to submit themselves whole-heartedly, just as Abraham, to whom the Islamic faith readily relates itself, submitted to God" (Declaration Nostra Aetate, 3). Placing myself firmly within this perspective, I have had occasion, since the very beginning of my pontificate, to express my wish to continue establishing bridges of friendship with the adherents of all religions, showing particular appreciation for the growth of dialogue between Muslims and Christians (cf. Address to the Delegates of Other Churches and Ecclesial Communities and of Other Religious Traditions, 25 April 2005). As I underlined at Cologne last year, "Inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue between Christians and Muslims cannot be reduced to an optional extra. It is, in fact, a vital necessity, on which in large measure our future depends" (Meeting with Representatives of Some Muslim Communities, Cologne, 20 August 2005). In a world marked by relativism and too often excluding the transcendence and universality of reason, we are in great need of an authentic dialogue between religions and between cultures, capable of assisting us, in a spirit of fruitful co-operation, to overcome all the tensions together. Continuing, then, the work undertaken by my predecessor, Pope John Paul II, I sincerely pray that the relations of trust which have developed between Christians and Muslims over several years, will not only continue, but will develop further in a spirit of sincere and respectful dialogue, based on ever more authentic reciprocal knowledge which, with joy, recognizes the religious values that we have in common and, with loyalty, respects the differences.

Inter-religious and inter-cultural dialogue is a necessity for building together this world of peace and fraternity ardently desired by all people of good will. In this area, our contemporaries expect from us an eloquent witness to show all people the value of the religious dimension of life. Likewise, faithful to the teachings of their own religious traditions, Christians and Muslims must learn to work together, as indeed they already do in many common undertakings, in order to guard against all forms of intolerance and to oppose all manifestations of violence; as for us, religious authorities and political leaders, we must guide and encourage them in this direction. Indeed, "although considerable dissensions and enmities between Christians and Muslims may have arisen in the course of the centuries, the Council urges all parties that, forgetting past things, they train themselves towards sincere mutual understanding and together maintain and promote social justice and moral values as well as peace and freedom for all people" (Declaration, Nostra Aetate, 3). The lessons of the past must therefore help us to seek paths of reconciliation, in order to live with respect for the identity and freedom of each individual, with a view to fruitful co-operation in the service of all humanity. As Pope John Paul II said in his memorable speech to young people at Casablanca in Morocco, "Respect and dialogue require reciprocity in all spheres, especially in that which concerns basic freedoms, more particularly religious freedom. They favour peace and agreement between peoples" (no. 5).

Dear friends, I am profoundly convinced that in the current world situation it is imperative that Christians and Muslims engage with one another in order to address the numerous challenges that present themselves to humanity, especially those concerning the defence and promotion of the dignity of the human person and of the rights ensuing from that dignity. When threats mount up against people and against peace, by recognizing the central character of the human person and by working with perseverance to see that human life is always respected, Christians and Muslims manifest their obedience to the Creator, who wishes all people to live in the dignity that he has bestowed upon them.

Dear friends, I pray with my whole heart that the merciful God will guide our steps along the paths of an ever more authentic mutual understanding. At this time when for Muslims the spiritual journey of the month of Ramadan is beginning, I address to all of them my cordial good wishes, praying that the Almighty may grant them serene and peaceful lives. May the God of peace fill you with the abundance of his Blessings, together with the communities that you represent!

Just War and Judaism and Islam

The BBC had a Sunday broadcast on the concept of a "just war" as seen from Jewish and Muslim perspectives.  You can download it to listen to the broadcast.  Those participating include Dr. Yaakov Wise, a researcher concerning Orthodox Judaism at Manchester University, and Imam At-sham of the Islamic Society of Britain.

"Progressive Thinking in Contemporary Islam"

Sandro Magister, in www.chiesa, has posted an article entitled "Professor Ratzinger goes back to school.  The first part of the article discusses the Pope's annual meeting with a group of his former doctoral students, which has continued to take place each year.  The topic planned for this year, the week-end of September 2 and 3, is creation and design.  Speakers will include Peter Schuster (of the Austrian Academy of Sciences), Cardinal Christoph Schönborn (archbishop of Vienna and theologian), Paul Erbrich, S.J. (professor of the philosophy of nature in Munich) and Robert Spaemann (professor of political philosophy and one of Germany's foremost experts on modernity).

The second part of Magister's article addresses the issue of Islam and democracy from last year's meeting.  It includes an English translation of an article by German Jesuit, Professor Christian Troll, S.J., entitled "Progressive Thinking in Contemporary Islam" which addresses developing trends in Islamic thinking and the potential for Islam to adapt to contemporary ways of thought.  Professor Troll is professor of islamic studies at the Sankt Georgen faculty of theology.  He was one of several present at last year's meeting who joined in clarifying the Pope's thinking on this issue after some controversy arose.

Carmelite Father Millan on Forgiveness and Judaism

Carmelite Father Fernando Millan Romeral, a professor at the Pontifical University of Comillas in Madrid, was interviewed by ZENIT, as reported in an article published today.  The subject of the interview was a comparison of Christian and Jewish ideas of forgiveness.  An excerpt:

"What has perhaps happened, at least in certain milieus, is that by preaching a merciful God, which could not be otherwise, we have forgotten that forgiveness means a "return" to God, a conversion -- that God does not rain down forgiveness and does not distribute it indiscriminately."

An urgent need for religions and their symbols to be respected

Pope Benedict XVI today spoke about the need for religious freedom and respect, and about the need to oppose violence as a response to religious provocation.  The occasion was his message given in receiving the Letters of Credence of Ali Achour, the new ambassador of Morocco to the Holy See.   

A press release, published by Vatican Information Service today, includes the following:

"In ever greater numbers, emigrants from less favored regions call at the gates of Europe in search of better living conditions," said the Pope. Therefore, it is necessary "that institutions in the countries of destination and transit, do not consider these people as a mere commodity or labor force, and that they respect their fundamental rights and their dignity." . . .

Benedict XVI then referred to Morocco's contribution to "the consolidation of dialogue between civilizations, cultures and religions," recalling that "in the current international context, the Catholic Church is convinced that, in order to support peace and understanding among peoples, ... there is an urgent need for religions and their symbols to be respected, and for believers not to be exposed to provocations that wound ... their religious feelings."

"Nonetheless," the Holy Father added, "intolerance and violence can never be justified as a response to offence, because they are incompatible with the sacred principles of religion. For this reason, we can only lament the actions of those who deliberately profit from the offence caused to religious sentiments in order to foment violence, because their aims are foreign to religion."

The Pope concluded his address to the diplomat by recalling that for believers and for people of good will, the only road that leads to peace and fraternity is that of "respect for the religious practices and convictions of others," so that "in all societies, everyone may be assured of the opportunity to practice the religion they have freely chosen."

The Asia News - Italy article is here.

Love and Malice

The past week has been a study in interfaith dialogue, and its difficulties, spread out across the front pages of the world's newspapers, with little explicit comparison or commentary.  The events speak for themselves, and the task at hand is to continue to be balanced and fair in commentary in the face of the  day's world news, knowing that the comparison might have looked a bit different on some other day of the year, or at least the decade.  It has not been so long since the U.S. clergy abuse scandal has been on the front pages that we could easily set that aside, ignore it, and mention only the negative pictures of Islam and the positive pictures of Christianity in today's papers.  We know that most Muslims did not spend the day burning somebody else's embassy building somewhere in the world, and we know that it is not realistic to blame the vast majority for what a small minority has done. 

Still, setting aside the temptation to paint all Muslims with broad strokes, knowing that the same stereotyping has sometimes hurt us too, the day's news still presents a vivid picture of a difference in how Christianity sees God, and it does not appear to be only the minority of either faith who differ from each other on this issue. 

The February 5 issue of Famiglia Christiana published Pope Benedict XVI's Encyclical, Deus Caritas Est, together with his own introduction to it, written for the newspaper.   The introduction appears in English today in ZENIT here, alongside today's ZENIT articles about the priest who died Saturday, Father Santoro, whose body arrived today in his home diocese of Rome, that story here.

True enough, we too feel the pain of media bias at times, of the "Christianophobia" that has struck public Christmas displays, the "Happy Holidays" and "Holiday Cards" and all the rest, when we begin to feel that every other religion is protected in the public square while we are the ones to be protected from, for some reason, and when it seems that so many people in public office think that "freedom of religion" means "freedom from Christianity" and little more.  We understand the anger over the cartoons that prompted Muslim anger, but it is hard to  understand the response to that anger, and it is hard to understand so large a number of people who have been convinced that their rage and desire for revenge express the nature of God. 

Do they believe, as we do, that non-believers will see God's love in our love which reflects His?  Not from what we have seen in these days. 

Do they pray, as we do, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us?"  Surely not.  They most certainly have not shown the belief in a forgiving God who encourages us to imitate His forgiving nature by forgiving those who offend us.  Jesus said:

15 "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. 16 You will know them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles? 17 So, every sound tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears evil fruit. 

Matthew 7:15-17 (RSV)

Does the implication of this ring in the minds of anyone other than Christians as we watch today's news?  Or would they simply think that we were being self-righteous to say it? 

The Danish Prime Minister today called for Muslims to refrain from violence in what he called a "global crisis", announced in a major article on BBC Online.  Protests spread to Africa.  Of course the extremists are taking advantage of the situation.  It is a situation that lends itself to being taken advantage of.  But they have not had a difficult time of it, finding people willing to cooperate with their efforts.  They want to avenge the insult to Allah.   Other Muslims will not support the extremists, ofcourse.  But where is the Muslim opposition to revenge?  The Muslim faith in turning the other cheek?  Jesus said:

But I say to you, Do not resist one who is evil. But if any one strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Matthew 5: 39 (RSV)

In seventh century Sinai, there was a desert monk who lived in a time when Christian monks in Sinai had to be careful what they said as the early Muslims attacked other monasteries in the area and took political control.  It is often thought that he and his fellow monks must have struck a deal, that they would be careful what they said about the Muslims and, in turn, the Muslims would not attack their monastery as they had attacked some other Christians.  The references to Islam in John Climacus's Ladder of Divine Ascent are subtle and cautious and few.  And yet he counseled his fellow monks:

The remembrance of what Jesus suffered is a cure for remembrance of wrongs, shaming it powerfully with His patient endurance.

Worms thrive in a rotten tree; malice thrives in the deceptively meek and silent.  He who has expelled malice has found forgiveness, but he who hugs it is deprived of mercy.

Some labor and struggle hard to earn forgiveness, but better than these is the man who forgets the wrongs done to him.  Forgive quickly and you will be abundantly forgiven.  To forget wrongs is to prove oneself truly repentant, but to brood on them and at the same time to imagine one is practicing repentance is to act like the man who is convinced he is running when in fact he is fast asleep. 

I have seen malicious people recommending forgiveness to others and then, shamed by their own words, they managed to rid themselves of this vice.

Never imagine that this dark vice is a passion of no importance, for it often reaches out even to spiritual men.

- St. John Climacus (also known as “John of Sinai” and “John the Scholastic”), The Ladder of Divine Ascent, Step 9 ("On Malice"), ca. 7th century, translated from the Greek by Colm Luibheid and Norman Russell, c. 1982, Paulist Press (The Classics of Western Spirituality), pg. 154.

Could we really hope that Sinai could turn back to its roots, could recognize in today's contrasting headlines the face of God in Christ's persistent love, demanding forgiveness?  Could Turkey too, as Father Santoro had hoped, be fertile soil today to receive the seeds sown there of the presence of Christ?  Perhaps, and yet we cannot be too overconfident in hoping that the land that once bore the fruit of some of the greatest Christian scholars of all of history might one day again be Christian. 

The contrast is sharp, set in motion by the seeming coincidence of the issuance of the first Encyclical of Pope Benedict XVI and the reaction to a Danish cartoon.  But is it visible to those caught up in the anger of the Muslim extremists, convinced that God wants their anger, that God needs their revenge?  The message of hope in Father Santoro's wish to take the Gospel back to the world where so much of the richness of the Christian faith began is a message that we might only hope will win, at least, tolerance from reasonable Muslim voices and perhaps, in time, a greater understanding of what their own roots are, of who their own Christian ancestors were, and of what was lost to them in the seventh century that might yet be regained.  God's grace and mercy have no boundaries.  Surely, it at least reminds us of what we have, in gratitude, and of our own need to exercise such forgiveness and grace.