LONDON, Oct 11: In an unprecedented open letter signed by 138 leading scholars from every sect of Islam and sent to the Pope and other Christian leaders on Thursday, the signatories have warned that the “survival of the world” would be at stake if Muslims and Christians do not make peace with each other.
On the eve of Eidul Fitr the Muslim leaders have pleaded with Christian leaders “to come together with us on the common essentials of our two religions” and spell out the similarities between passages of the Bible and the Quran.
According to a report published in the Times on Thursday, the scholars stated: “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 newspaper said the phrasing has echoes of the New Testament passage: “He that is not with me is against me” - a passage used by President George Bush when addressing a joint session of Congress nine days after 9/11.
The Muslims call instead for the emphasis to be on the shared characteristics of world’s two largest faiths.
The letter, addressed to Pope Benedict XVI, to the Orthodox Church’s Patriarch of Constantinople, Bartholomew 1 and all the other Orthodox Patriarchs and to the Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams and the leaders of all other Protestant churches worldwide, was rolled out around the world this morning in a series of press conferences beginning in Jordan.
It is supported by the Bishop of London, the Right Rev Richard Chartres.
It is expected to be followed by a conference between Muslim and Christian world leaders at a “neutral” ground, such as at a university in America.
“Finding common ground between Muslims and Christians is not simply a matter for polite ecumenical dialogue between selected religious leaders,” the Muslim scholars say, noting that Christians and Muslims make up over a third and a fifth of humanity respectively.
“Together they make up more than 55 per cent of the population, making the relationship between these two religious communities the most important factor in contributing to meaningful peace around the world. If Muslims and Christians are not at peace, the world cannot be at peace.”
The Muslims even quoted passages verbatim from the Bible, extremely rare in a publication of this kind and at this level and an indication of their resolve to bring the two faiths together and end the present tensions between them.
