Muslim and Catholic representatives have joined their voices in rejecting the manipulation of religion to justify political interests, violence or discrimination.
A historic declaration signed by the president of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue and a Sunni leader from the Al-Azhar university marked the conclusion of an annual meeting held last week in Cairo. The meetings gather members of the pontifical council and the Al-Azhar permanent committee for dialogue among the monotheistic religions.
Sheik Muhammad Abd al-Aziz Wasil and Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran were the co-signers.
The final declaration explains that the participants were received by the grand imam of Al-Azhar, professor and sheik Muhammad Sayyed Tantawi. Cardinal Tauran thanked him for having condemned the acts of violence in which six Christians and a Muslim policeman died in Naga Hamadi, Egypt, on the past Orthodox Christmas, and for having expressed solidarity to the victims’ families and reaffirmed the equality of rights and duties of all citizens, regardless of their religious membership.
Sheik Tantawi said he only did what he thought was his duty in face of those tragic events.
CAIRO, Egypt, MARCH 1, 2010 (Zenit.org)