GENEVA: Bava Jain, secretary-general of the World Council of Religious Leaders, has described the interfaith dialogue initiative of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah as historic and bold, adding that it would have tremendous impact on world peace and stability if effective measures were taken to implement it.
“His Majesty King Abdullah has done his part in paving the foundation for this historic initiative by visiting the Vatican, meeting the Pope, organizing the Madrid conference and bringing together world leaders at the UN General Assembly to discuss the initiative. Now it is our duty to build upon this initiative to make it a big success,” he told Arab News.
Speaking on the eve of the two-day international interfaith conference in Geneva, which is to focus on the impact of King Abdullah’s initiative in the dissemination of human values, Jain said the Geneva meet should give a clear vision on implementation of the initiative and set a five-year time frame for the purpose. “King Abdullah deserves the Nobel Peace Prize for taking this extremely bold initiative to establish peace in the world,” Jain said. He hoped that the Nobel Foundation would consider him for the prize, adding that it would have great impact on the initiative, drawing popular support from Muslims as well as non-Muslims. He said King Abdullah’s initiative has every potential for success as he is a great Muslim leader of international reputation and is held in high esteem by Muslims all over the world being the custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.
Jain also spoke about the challenges ahead for the Makkah-based Muslim World League (MWL), the main organizer of the interfaith dialogue conferences. “King Abdullah selected MWL and its Secretary-General Abdullah Al-Turki for this task as the MWL represents several Muslim organizations around the world.” Jain, who has been in contact with Al-Turki for more than 10 years, said he was impressed by the MWL chief’s efforts in convincing hard-liners on the importance of dialogue with leaders of other faiths. “We are now in a critical stage of the initiative. We should have a clear vision and plan for the future,” he said.
Jain said the MWL should play a leadership role in harnessing the skills and efforts of all those who support the initiative to implement it on the ground. “People don’t have any clue now as to where it is going,” he said and asked the Geneva conference to give a clear direction for future interfaith dialogues.
He also underlined the significance of religious diplomacy, adding that religious pundits could play a big role along with political leaders in resolving world issues. He called for the establishment of an international training and research institute to educate young religious leaders on the importance of dialogue among people of different faiths.
Delegates from 35 countries are taking part in the conference, which opens Wednesday. They include William Baker, president of Christians and Muslims for Peace in the US; David Rosen, director of inter-religious affairs at the American Jewish Committee; Pramjeet Singh Sarna, president of Delhi Sikh Gurudwara Rakab Ganj Sahib; Kuniaki Kuni, president of the Association of Shinto Temples in Japan; and Xue Cheng, vice chairman of the Buddhist Association of China.
Professor M.D. Nalapat, UNESCO peace chair at Manipal University in India, commended King Abdullah for taking this noble initiative. “Islam is a peaceful religion but the extremists have tarnished its image.” He said making judgment on the actions of people comes under the authority of God. “When we attack or condemn others on the basis of their actions we are infringing on the authority of God.”
Nalapat, a Budhist who has learned a lot about Islam from his mother Kamala Suraiya, the famous Indian novelist and poetess, urged Muslims to show to the world that Islam is a religion of mercy and compassion through their actions. He criticized world media for projecting the mischievous actions of a handful of extremist Muslims, ignoring good works of the majority.
