Religious Terrorism Rejected

Pope Benedict XVI and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.

Meetings at the Vatican and the United Nations have condemned the religious pretensions of terrorists. During the first week in November religious scholars from several faiths met at the Vatican. Last week secular leaders from many nations met in New York. Both meetings addressed the religious dimensions of terrorism.

"A joint declaration issued at the end of a Vatican sponsored three-day Muslim-Catholic forum has called for recognition by both Muslims and Christians of the rights of women and freedom of conscience, and condemned terrorism in the name of religion," the Times of London reported.

Seventy nations participated in the the UN meeting, the latest in a series of discussions organized around inter-faith issues by Saudi Arabia. In their final declaration the UN delegates offered, "“Participating States affirmed their rejection of the use of religion to justify the killing of innocent people and actions of terrorism, violence and coercion, which directly contradict the commitment of all religions to peace, justice and equality.”

In his remarks to the UN delegates President Bush argued, "We may profess different creeds and worship in different places, but our faith leads us to common values. We believe God calls us to love our neighbors, and to treat one another with compassion and respect. We believe God calls us to honor the dignity of all life, and to speak against cruelty and injustice. We believe God calls us to live in peace -- and to oppose all those who use His name to justify violence and murder."

In their Joint Declaration those meeting November 4-6 at Rome's Gregorian University wrote, "We profess that Catholics and Muslims are called to be instruments of love and harmony among believers, and for humanity as a whole, renouncing any oppression, aggressive violence and terrorism, especially that committed in the name of religion, and upholding the principle of justice for all."

The Vatican meeting was the specific result of an inter-religious controversy arising from remarks by Pope Benedict XVI at Regensburg University in 2006. Islamic scholars responded to the controversy with an open letter which, in turn, led to the organizing of recent discussions in Rome.

The open letter, originally signed by 138 leading Islamic scholars, was entitled A Common Word between Us and You. The letter begins, "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."

Recent public opinion surveys in Muslim nations have found dwindling support for terrorism in the name of Islam. Suicide bombings are, in particular, increasingly viewed as inconsistent with Islamic teaching.

Interfaith discussions are certainly not restricted to international conclaves. Recent news reports have highlighted such interactions in Los Angeles, New Haven, and more broadly.

NOTE TO READERS: Over the next several weeks a new set of professional obligations may delay or interrupt regular publication of Monday (P)review.