Final Statement on The Eleventh Colloquium between The Center for Interreligious & Intercultural Dialogue (C.I.I.D.) of The Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (I.C.R.O.) (Teheran) and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (P.C.I.D.)
15 November 2019

The Center for Interreligious & Intercultural Dialogue of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization and the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue organized their Eleventh Colloquium on November 11-12, 2019 in Teheran, under the joint chairmanship of His Excellency Dr. Abuzar Ibrahimi Turkaman, President of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization, and His Eminence Cardinal Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot, President of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue.

The delegation of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization was comprised of the following:

Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Taskhiri
Ayatollah Dr. Ahmad Beheshti
Ayatollah Dr. Reza Ramezani
Ayatollah Abolghasem Alidoust Abarghouei
Dr. Mohammad Mehdi Taskhiri
Dr. Mahmood Hekmatnia
Dr. Mohammad Mahdi Imanipour
Dr. Mohammad Mahdi Taskhiri
Dr. Mohammad Hossain Mozafari
Ms. Haydeh Ramazan Rostamabadi
Mr. Ali Asghar Ameri Bafghi

The delegation of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue was composed of the following:

Msgr. Khaled Akasheh
H.E. Archbishop Leo Boccardi
H.E. Monsignor Sarkis Davidian
Msgr. Patrick Valdrini
Rev. Laurent Basanese
Rev. Diego Sarrio Cucarella
Rev. Dr. David Marshall
Dr. Ghada Shbeir
Sister Nora Ishoui
Sister Rachel Youkhaneh

In the inaugural session, in addition to the opening remarks by Dr. Turkaman and Cardinal Ayuso Guixot, a talk was given by Ayatollah Abolghasem Alidoust Abarghouei, Faculty Member of the Islamic Research Institute for Culture and Thought on “Human Fraternity”.

The participants focused on the theme: “Christians and Muslims: Serving humanity together” from the viewpoints of Shia Islam and Catholicism. Papers were presented on the following subthemes:

1. Promoting individual rights and duties: Muslim and Christian Perspectives

2. Serving together the family and the education of the youth: Christian and Muslim Perspectives

3. Serving together in society: Muslim and Christian Perspectives

4. Serving together in the international community: Christian and Muslim Perspectives.

At the end of the meeting, the participants agreed on the following:

1 – Service to others, especially the sick, the poor and the needy, is of capital importance to Christians and Muslims. In addition, serving others witnesses to the universal love of God for all human beings, because He created everyone and everything, and cares for all His creation with the same love.

2 – Service to humanity requires treatment of all human beings without discrimination across the world. All individuals, all communities and all nations should be treated with a sense of humanity, including in situations of war or under international sanctions.

3 – Muslims and Christians, along with all persons of good will who do not profess any particular religion, are called to promote fundamental human rights for everybody, everywhere, at all times. Freedom of conscience and of religion is the cornerstone of the edifice of human rights and therefore should be persevered and promoted.

4 – Duties are inseparable from rights. Therefore, every person and group, while defending their rights, should also do their best to fulfil their duties towards their families, communities and societies.

5 – The formation of young people as both sincere believers and responsible citizens is of essential importance for religions and states alike. It is on families that the primary responsibility for this formation of young people falls; they thus have the right to be supported in this responsibility by the whole of society.

6 – A particular and urgent service to humanity today is the custody of creation, taking into consideration in particular climate change and the environmental crisis. This endeavor requires the collaboration of all believers and people of good will.

The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue expressed profound gratitude to the Center for Interreligious & Intercultural Dialogue and to the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization for their warm welcome and generous hospitality.

The participants decided to hold the next colloquium in Rome in 2021, to be preceded by a preparatory meeting in 2020.

Final Declaration del IV Catholic-Muslim Forum ?(8 November 2017, Berkeley, USA), 10.11.2017

The Catholic-Muslim Forum, established in 2008 by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (P.C.I.D.) and the Signatories of the “Open Letter” (A Common Word) to Pope Benedict XVI and other Christian Leaders, held its Fourth Seminar in Berkeley (CA, USA), from 6th to 8th November 2017 on the theme, “Integral Human Development: Growing in Dignity. Catholic and Muslim perspectives.”

The Seminar, hosted by Zaytuna College, was held under the patronage of HRH Prince Ghazi bin Muhammad of Jordan, Coordinator of the Muslim side of the Forum, and that of His Eminence Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, President of the P.C.I.D.
The theme was studied under three sub-themes, treated respectively from the Catholic and the Muslims viewpoints: 1) “What does it mean to be human?”; 2) “Integral human development”; and 3) “Obstacles and opportunities to integral human development.”
Twelve persons from each side participated, along with six observers.

The Muslim delegation was led by Shaykh Dr. Hamza Yusuf, President of Zaytuna College, and the Christian delegation by the Most Reverend Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot, M.C.C.J., Secretary of the P.C.I.D., on behalf of Cardinal Tauran.

The Participants from the Muslim side were as follows:
1) Imam Zaid Shakir
Co-Founder and Senior Faculty Member, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
2) Hatem Bazian, Ph.D.
Provost and Co-Founder, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
3) Omar Quraishi, Ph.D.
Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
Presenter: “What it Means to Be Human”
4) Shaykh Omar Abboud
Director of the Institute for Interreligious Dialogue, Argentina
5) Tarek Elgawhary, Ph.D.
Presenter: Integral Human Development, CEO Coexist Foundation
6) Ismail Alatas, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies at NYU
7) Abdullah bin Hamid Ali, Ph.D.
Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
8) Walead Mosaad, Ph.D.
Director of Muslim Student Life at Lehigh
Presenter: “Obstacles and Opportunities to Integral Human
Development”
9) Ali Ataie, Ph.D.
Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
10) Shaykh Faraz Khan
Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
11) Eiyad Al-Kutubi, Ph.D.
Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA

The Observers from the Muslim side were as follows:
1) Mr. Lutfi H. Asfour
Director of the Office of HRH Prince Ghazi Bin Muhammad
2) Mr. Nabil Al Saheb
First Deputy of the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought
3) Mark Delp, Ph.D.
Dean of Faculty, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
4) Rev. Francisco Nahoe, O.F.M. Conv.
Faculty Member, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
5) Munir Jiwa, Ph.D.
Founding Director, Center for Islamic Studies at the Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, California, USA
6) Aisha Subhani, M.D.
Member of the Board of Trustees, Zaytuna College, Berkeley, California, USA
7) Asad Tarsin, M.D.
Curriculum Director, Deen Intensive Foundation

The participants from the Catholic side were as follows:
1) Monsignor Khaled Akasheh
Bureau Chief for Islam, P.C.I.D.
2) Youssef Kamal El-Hage, Ph.D.
Professor at Notre Dame University, Lebanon
Presenter subtheme 1: “What Does it Mean to be Human?”
3) Reverend Prof. Dr. Mohan Doss, S.V.D.
Dean of Theology, Pune, India
Presenter Subtheme 2: “Integral Human Development: A Catholic Perspective”
4) Ms. Flaminia Giovanelli, Ph.D.
Under-Secretary, Dicastery for the Service of Human Integral Development,
Vatican City
Presenter Subtheme 3: “Obstacles and Opportunities to Integral Human
Development”
5) Most Reverend Felix A. Machado
Bishop of Vasai, India
Representative of the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences (F.A.B.C.)
6) Most Reverend Michael Charles Barber, S.I.
Bishop of Oakland, California, USA
7) Most Reverend James Massa
Auxiliary Bishop of Brooklyn, New York, USA
8) Reverend Joseph Komakoma
Secretary General and Representative, Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (S.E.C.A.M.), Accra, Ghana
9) Reverend Andrea Pacini, Ph.D.
Representative, Council of European Bishops’ Conferences (CCEE)
Torino, Italy
10) Prof. Paolo G. Carozza
Director, Kellogg Institute for International Studies
Professor of Law and Concurrent Professor of Political Science
University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA
11) Monsignor Labib Copti
Priest of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, San Francisco, California, USA.

The Observers from the Catholic side were:
1) Reverend Russel Murray, OFM, Ph.D.
General Animator for Evangelization, General Curia of Franciscan Friars,
Rome
2) Reverend Kevin O’Brien, S.J., Ph.D.
Dean and University Professor, Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara
Berkeley, California, USA.
3) Reverend Bernard Poggi
Priest of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, Berkeley, California, USA.
4) Sister Marianne Farina, CSC, Ph.D.
Dominican School of Philosophy and the Theology, Berkeley, California, USA.
5) Ms. Giulia Nembrini, B.A., M.A.
Member of Communion and Liberation, USA
6) Anh Q. Tran, S.J. Assistant Professor of Historical and Systematic Theology
Jesuit School of Theology, Santa Clara University, Berkeley, California, USA

After listening to the presentation of the Papers by Muslim and Catholic Scholars, the participants noted with satisfaction significant convergences between their respective traditions. Such convergences constitute a motive of hope not only for Christians and Muslims but for all, favoring a meaningful collaboration for the promotion of integral human development.

After sharing viewpoints, ideas, and concerns, the participants agreed on the following:

1) Christianity and Islam both assert that God created humanity, placing it at the very summit of creation, for use with gratitude and wisdom with respect for the laws of nature as stewards for the earth and her resources gifted by Almighty God for all generations.

2) God bestowed on every human being inalienable dignity from which fundamental human rights are derived, as well as the obligation of governments to protect them.

3) We assert the equal dignity and value of all persons irrespective of their race, gender, religion, or social status, and we categorically condemn any attempts to stereotype any people or attribute collective guilt to them for the actions of individuals among them.

4) Freedom of conscience and of religion resides at the peak of the edifice of human rights. Therefore, our collective duty demands that we respect, preserve, and promote such rights.

5) God, our Creator, wills the integral growth of every human being for the full flourishing of God’s gifts: body, soul, intellect, and spirit.

6) Christianity and Islam have moral, intellectual, and spiritual resources that can contribute to the integral human development of both individuals and communities. Persons of good will committed to the common good are the natural allies of believers desirous of the holistic development of persons, communities, and all of humanity and the conservation of the environment that sustains us.

7) As believers, we are called to do all we can to address all that hinders the integral development of humanity, including any erroneous interpretations or understandings of our respective sacred texts and traditions.

8) We believe that insecurity, conflicts, and the proliferation of armaments constitute grave obstacles to the realization of God’s will for humanity, its wellbeing and growth in peace and security. This is why we consider it our moral obligation to denounce wars and the arms trade that facilitate them, and instead use humanity’s resources for our personal and collective flourishing.

9) Together, as believers, we assert that those in need of development must be enabled to fulfill their destiny, allowing them to take their rightful place as full members of the human family according to God’s will.

Visit to the Vatican of H.E. Dr. Muhammad al-Issa,
Secretary General of the World Muslim League

On Wednesday 20 September 2017,

Pope Francis received H.E. Dr. Muhammad al-Issa, Secretary General of the World Muslim League (WML), accompanied by a delegation.

Today an informal meeting was held in the offices of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue between Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Dicastery, and the aforementioned Guests, during which it was reiterated that: religion and violence are incompatible; religions have moral resources capable of contributing to fraternity and peace; the phenomenon of fundamentalism, in particular when violent, is troubling and joint efforts are required to counter it. In addition, situations exist where freedom of conscience and of religion are not entirely respected and protected, so there is an urgent need to remedy this, renewing “religious discourse” and reviewing school books.

The parties agreed to establish a joint permanent committee in the near future.

Declaration by the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue calling for human and spiritual solidarity with the victims of the attack on “Charlie Hebdo” and their families
January 8, 2015

“As we reach the end of the meeting in Rome of the four Imams of France, who attended yesterday’s general audience along with the delegation from the French Episcopal Conference, the participants, shocked by the heinous attack on 7 January 2015 on the offices of the publication ‘Charlie Hebdo’, wish once more to echo the words pronounced by Pope yesterday and this morning, denouncing this cruelty and blind violence. Like him, we invite believers to show through friendship and prayer their human and spiritual solidarity towards the victims and their families.

In these circumstances, it should be noted that, without freedom of speech, the world is in danger: it is imperative to oppose hate and every form of violence that destroys human life, violates the dignity of the person and radically undermines the foundation of peaceful co-existence between persons and peoples, notwithstanding differences of nationality, religion and culture.

Religious leaders are called upon to further promote a ‘culture of peace and hope able to conquer fear and to build bridges between people.

Considering the impact of the media, their leaders are invited to offer information that is respectful of religions, their followers and their practices, thus favouring a culture of encounter.

Interreligious dialogue remains the only path to follow together to dissipate prejudice”.

Signed by

Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran, president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue
Bishop Michel Dubost of Evry-Corbeil et Essonnes, president of the Council for Interreligious Relations of the Bishops' Conference of France
Imam Tareq Oubrou, Rector of the Great Mosque of Bordeaux
Imam Azzedine Cami, Rector of the Mosque "Othmane" de Villeurbanne
Imam Mohammed Moussaoui, President of the "Union des Mosquées de France (UMF)
Imam Djelloul Seddiki, Director of the "Institut Al Ghazali de la Mosquée de Paris"
Fr. Christophe Roucou, director of the National Service for Relations with Islam, France.

The King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue declares in the face of conflict the following:

The Foreign Minister of Austria, Sebastian Kurz, the Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Saud Al-Faisal, the Deputy Foreign Minister of Spain, Gonzalo de Benito Secades, and Reverend Father Miguel Ángel Ayuso Guixot of the Founding Observer, the Holy See, signed the declaration during a Ministerial Meeting in New York on 25 September 2014.

We Believe

We believe in the sanctity of life and the inherent dignity of the person. We believe that religion is an enabler of respect and reconciliation.

We believe that dialogue among people of different religions and cultures is the path to lasting peace and social cohesion.

We affirm the purposes and principles enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in particular the right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. These equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family are the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world. 

We Reject

We condemn violent conflict in the world, more so violence committed in the name of religion, and call for an end to violent hostility. We deplore loss of life and commend those who seek to alleviate suffering, as well as those who strive to promote wellbeing, harmony and peace.

We oppose the instrumentalization of religion to make war.

We strongly condemn terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, committed by whomever, wherever and for whatever purposes.

And we condemn hate speech and extremism that incite violence and fuel prejudice. KAICIID combats prejudice and intolerance, in all their forms. 

We Will Act

KAICIID counteracts the abuse of religion to justify oppression, violence and conflict and facilitates peaceful resolution by bringing conflict parties to the dialogue table.

We continue to enhance interreligious and intercultural dialogue in order to foster respect, understanding and cooperation among people.

We Resolve

We resolve to promote mutual respect and understanding among followers of all religions and peoples of all cultures, particularly through dialogue.

Let us look upon each other as sisters and brothers and, and let us appreciate difference as enrichment rather than fearing “otherness” as a threat.

9th Colloquium between Iran’s Center for Interreligious Dialogue (CID) of the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (ICRO) and The Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue (PCID)