“Herald” (Vol.14, No. 41, 21 October 2007)
‘Islamic scholars send open letter to Pope’ (p.1)
London: More than 130 Muslim scholars have written to Pope Benedict XVI and other Christian leaders urging greater understanding between the two faiths. Entitled A Common Word Between Us and You, the historic letter compares passages in the Koran and the Bible, concluding that both emphasise “the primary of total love and devotion to God”, and the love of the neighbour.
The message, which coincides with the Aidilfitri celebrations marking the end of Ramadan says world peace could depend on improved relations between Muslims and Christians. It identifies the principles of accepting only one god (sic) and living in peace with one’s neighbours as common ground between the two religions. It was also sent to the Archbishop of Canterbury, the heads of the Lutheran, Methodist and Baptist churches, the Orthodox Church’s Patriarch of Constantinople BartholomewⅠand other Orthodox Patriarchs.
With Muslims and Christians making up more than half the world’s population,the letter goes on, the relationship between the two religious communities is “the most important factor in contributing to meaningful peace around the world”.
“As Muslims, we say to Christians that we are not against them and that Islam is not against them−so long as they do not wage war against Muslims on account of their religion, oppress them and drive them out of their homes,” the letter says.
It adds: “To those who nevertheless relish conflict and destruction for their own sake or reckon that ultimately they stand to gain through them, we say our very eternal souls are all also at stake if we fail to sincerely make every effort to make peace and come together in harmony.”
One of the signatories, Dr. Aref Ali Nayed, a senior adviser at the Cambridge Inter-faith Programme at Cambridge University, told the BBC that the document should be seen as a landmark. Dr.Aref was also a former Professor at the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies (Rome); Former Professor at International Institute for Islamic Thought and Civilisation (ISTAC, Malaysia).
“Thereare Sunnis, Shias, Ibadis and even the…Ismailian and Jaafari schools, so it’s a consensus,” he said.
Professor David Ford, director of the programme, said the letter was unprecedented. “If sufficient people and groups heed this statement and act on it then the atmosphere will be changed into one in which violent extremists cannot flourish,” he said in a statement.
The letter was signed by prominent Muslim leaders, politicians and academics, including the Grand Muftis of Bosnia and Hercegovina, Russia, Croatia, Kosovo and Syria, the Secretary-General of the Organisationof the Islamic Conference,the former Grand Mufti of Egypt and the founder of the Ulema Organisation in Iraq. To read the full letter see: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/pdfs/11-10-07-letter.pdf.−ICN
The Malaysians who signed the letter are:
・H.E. Dr. Anwar Ibrahim, Former Deputy Minister of Malaysia: Honorary President of Accountability.
・Prof. Dr. Mohammad Hashim Kamali, Dean and Professor, International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation (ISTAC), International Islamic University, Malaysia.
・Dato Dr. Abdul Hamid Othman, Advisor to the H.E. the Prime Minister of Malaysia.
・Prof. Dr. Muddathir Abdel-Rahim Al-Tayib, Professor of Political Science and Islamic Studies, International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilisation (ISTAC), Malaysia.
‘Extract: ‘Without justice between us there can be no peace’ (p.10)
(Note: The full text of the letter from Muslim leaders ran to 29 pages. They also issued an abridged text, which appears here in full.)
In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful.
Muslims and Christians together make up well over half of the world’s population. Without peace and justice between these two religious communities, there can be no meaningful peace in the world. The future of the world depends on peace between Muslims and Christians.
The basis for this peace and understanding already exists. It is part of the very foundational principles of both faiths: love of the One God, and love of the neighbour.
These principles are found over and over again in the sacred texts of Islam and Christianity.
The Unity of God, the necessity of love for Him, and the necessity of love of the neighbour is thus the common ground between Islam and Christianity.
The following are only a few examples: Of God’s Unity, God says in the Holy Qur’an: “Say: He is God, the One! / God, the Self-Sufficient Besought of all!” (Al-Ikhlas, 112:1-2).
Of the necessity of love for God, God says in the Holy Qur’an: “So invoke the Name of thy Lord and devote thyself to Him with a complete devotion.” (Al-Muzzammil, 73:8).
Of the necessity of love for the neighbour, the Prophet Muhammad said: “None of you has faith until you love for your neighbour what you love for yourself.”
In the New Testament, Jesus Christ said: “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One. /And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength. This is the first commandment. / And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12: 29-31).
In the Holy Qur’an, God Most High enjoins Muslims to issue the following call to Christians (and Jews−the people of the Scripture):
“Say: O People of the Scripture! Come to a common word between us and you: that we shall worship none but God, and that we shall ascribe no partner unto Him, and that none of us shall take others for lords beside God. And if they turn away, then say: Bear witness that we are they who have surrendered (unto Him).” (Aal‘Imran 3:64).
The words “we shall ascribe no partner unto Him” relate to the Unity of God, and the words “worship none but God”, relate to being totally devoted to God.
Hence they all relate to the First and Greatest Commandment.
According to one of the oldest and most authoritative commentaries on the Holy Qur’an the words “that none of us shall take others for lords beside God” mean “that none of us should obey the other in disobedience to what God has commanded”.
This relates to the Second Commandment because justice and freedom of religion are a crucial part of love of the neighbour.
Thus in obedience to the Holy Qur’an, we as Muslims invite Christians to come together with us, which is also what is most essential to our faith and practice: The Two Commandments of love.
(End)
