Ahmed Atta - Abu Dhabi - Sky News Arabic
In a majestic scene that embodies the meaning of tolerance, respect for others and coexistence, and of Zayed's founder in the UAE capital Abu Dhabi, the Pope of the Catholic Church, Pope Francis, and Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar,
The signing ceremony was attended by UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.
Sky News Arabia received the text of the historic document, which aims to "be a joint declaration of good and sincere intentions to invite all those who hold in their hearts a belief in God and a belief in human brotherhood to unite and work together for this document to become a guide for future generations. To a culture of mutual respect, in an atmosphere of recognition of the great divine grace that made all creatures brothers. "
The text of the document:
In the name of God, who created all human beings equal in rights, duties and dignity, and called upon them to live as brothers among themselves to rule the land and spread the values of goodness, love and peace.
In the name of the pure human soul that God has forbidden to lose, and he said that he was born on the same one, as if he was the beneficiary of all humanity, and who lived one breath as if he revived all people.
In the name of the poor, the wretched, the deprived and the marginalized, who Allah has commanded to be benevolent to them and to assist them in alleviating them, imposing on every human being, especially all capable and affordable.
On behalf of orphans and widows, displaced persons and displaced persons from their homes and homelands, and all victims of war, oppression and injustice, and the vulnerable, the frightened, the prisoners and the tortured in the land, without exclusion or discrimination.
In the name of peoples who have lost security, peace and coexistence, and have been devastated by destruction, destruction and conflict.
In the name of "human brotherhood" which brings together all human beings, unite and settle among them.
In the name of those brothers who have been overwhelmed by the policies of intolerance and discrimination, which are messing with the destinies and capabilities of peoples, the systems of blind profit, and the odious ideological tendencies.
In the name of the freedom which God has given to all human beings, and their punishment for them.
In the name of justice and mercy, the foundation of the king and the essence of goodness.
On behalf of all people of good will, in all parts of the world.
In the name of God and in the name of all of the above, Al-Azhar Al-Sharif - and all around it Muslims around the world and the majority - and the Catholic Church - and around it Catholics from the East and West - announce the adoption of a culture of dialogue.
We demand that we, the world's leaders, international policy makers and the global economy work hard to promote a culture of tolerance, coexistence and peace, immediately intervene to stop the innocent bloodshed and stop what the world is witnessing today. Wars, conflicts, climate decline, and cultural and moral decline.
We appeal to intellectuals, philosophers, clergy, artists, media professionals and innovators everywhere to re-discover the values of peace, justice, goodness, beauty, human brotherhood and coexistence, and to emphasize its importance as a lifeline for all, and to spread these values among people everywhere.
The Declaration, which comes from a deep reflection on the reality of our contemporary world, its successes and its suffering, tragedies and catastrophes, firmly believes that the most important causes of the world crisis today are the absence of human conscience and the exclusion of religious morals, as well as the call for individualism and material philosophies, The material worldly place the principles of higher and higher.
While we appreciate the positive aspects of our modern civilization in the fields of science, technology, medicine, industry and welfare, especially in the developed countries, we note that these historic and grand historical jumps have diminished with the morals of international actions and spiritual values and sense of responsibility have declined. Contributed to spreading a general sense of frustration, isolation and despair, and prompted many to join either in the spiral of atheist and non-religious extremism, or in the spiral of religious extremism, extremism and blind fanaticism. Some also pushed for forms of addiction and self-destruction.
History confirms that religious and nationalist extremism and intolerance have produced in the world, both in the West and in the East, what we can call the "Third World War on Parts", which began to reveal its ugly face in many places, The number of people left behind are dead, widows, bereaved and orphans. There are other places that are being prepared for further explosion, stockpiling of arms and ammunition in a global situation dominated by mistrust, disappointment and fear of the future and controlled by narrow material interests.
We also stress that the crushing political crises, injustice and lack of equitable distribution of natural resources - which are owned by a few rich people and deprived of the vast majority of the peoples of the earth - have produced and produced huge numbers of sick, destitute and dead, and fatal crises in many countries, That country of treasures and riches, and the possession of strong arms and young promising.
Faced with these crises, which make millions of children starve, and whose bodies - from the severity of poverty and hunger - turn into something like worn-out skeletons, an unacceptable world silence prevails.
Here, the necessity of the family as an indispensable nucleus for society and for human beings, for the birth of children, their upbringing, education and immunization with morality and family care, is seen as attacking the family institution, minimizing it and questioning the importance of its role as one of the most dangerous diseases of our time.
We also emphasize the importance of awakening the religious sense and the need to resurrect it in the hearts of new generations through proper education, sound cultivation, ethics and adherence to the religious teachings of the individual, selfish, and sectarian, and extremism and blind fanaticism in all its forms and manifestations.
The goal of religions is first and foremost to believe in God and worship Him, and to urge all human beings to believe that this universe depends on a God who governs Him. He is the Creator who created us with divine wisdom and gave us the gift of life to preserve. We must condemn all life-threatening practices such as genocide, terrorist operations, forced displacement, trafficking in human organs, abortion, so-called death / infidelity, and the policies that encourage it.
We also solemnly declare that religions have never been a source of war, hatred, hostility, fanaticism, violence or bloodshed. These tragedies are the result of deviations from religious teachings, the exploitation of religions in politics, and the interpretations of a range of religious figures - The stages of history - some of whom have employed the religious feeling to push people to do whatever has nothing to do with the true religion in order to achieve narrow political and economic goals. We therefore demand that all stop using religions to incite hatred, violence, extremism and blind fanaticism and stop using the name of God to justify killings Displacement and erosion For our common belief that God did not create people to be killed, to fight, to torture, or to restrict them in their lives and their pensions, and that he is in the power of defending or intimidating others in his name.
The document, which draws on all the international documents that have been drawn to the importance of the role of religions in the building of world peace, affirms the following: - The firm conviction that the correct teachings of religions call for adherence to the values of peace and the promotion of the values of mutual acquaintance, brotherhood, Charity, and awakening the trend of religiosity among young people and youth;
To protect new generations from the control of material thought, and from the danger of blindness and apathy based on the law of force rather than the force of law.
Freedom is the right of every human being: belief, thought, expression and practice; pluralism and differences in religion, color, sex, race and language are the wisdom of God's will; God has created human beings and made them a fixed asset. Specific culture, or imposing a civilized approach that is not acceptable to the other.
that justice based on mercy is the way to pursue a decent life, everyone has the right to live in it.
Dialogue and understanding, the dissemination of a culture of tolerance, acceptance of the other and coexistence among people will contribute to containing many of the social, political, economic and environmental problems that besiege a large part of humanity.
Dialogue between the faithful means meeting in the vast space of common spiritual, human and social values, and investing it in disseminating the highest morals and virtues advocated by religions, and avoiding sterile debate.
The protection of places of worship, such as temples, churches and mosques, is a duty guaranteed by all religions, human values, international conventions and conventions. Any attempt to expose places of worship and to target them by attack, bombing or destruction is a clear departure from the teachings of religions and a clear violation of international law.
that the abhorrent terrorism that threatens the security of people, whether in the East or the West, and in the North and the South, and is pursued by terror, terror and anticipation of the worst, is not a product of religion - even if the terrorists raise their signs and wear their badges. Therefore, the support of the terrorist movements must be stopped with money, weapons, planning or justification, or by providing media cover for them. This should be considered an international crime that threatens global security and peace. This extremism must be condemned in all its forms and manifestations.
The concept of citizenship is based on equality in the duties and rights enjoyed by all in fairness so must work to consolidate the concept of full citizenship in our societies, and abandon the use of the term "minorities", which carries a sense of isolation and inferiority, and paves the seeds of strife and discord, Entitlements and rights of some religious and civil citizens, and lead to discrimination against them.
The relationship between East and West is an absolute necessity for both, can not be replaced or ignored, to enrich them both from other civilization through exchange and dialogue of cultures; the West can find in the civilization of the East to address some of the spiritual and religious diseases that resulted from the tyranny of the material side, The East can find in the civilization of the West much of what helps to get rid of the cases of weakness and division and conflict and scientific, technical and cultural decline. It is important to emphasize the need to pay attention to the religious, cultural and historical differences that are central to the formation of the eastern human personality, culture and civilization, and to emphasize the importance of working to consolidate common human rights, thus contributing to a decent life for all human beings in the East and West away from the policy of double standards .
The recognition of the right of women to education and work and the exercise of their political rights is an urgent necessity and must be freed from historical and social pressures that are contrary to the principles of their faith and dignity. They must also be protected from sexual exploitation and from being treated as a commodity or instrument of enjoyment and profit. Vilifying the dignity of women and working to amend legislation that prevents women from achieving their full rights.
The fundamental rights of children to family upbringing, nutrition, education and care are the duty of the family and society, should be provided and defended, no children should be deprived of any place, any practices that impair their dignity or their rights should be condemned, They are exposed to risks - especially in the digital environment - and criminalize the trafficking of their innocent child, or violate it in any way.
The protection of the rights of the elderly, the weak, people with special needs and the vulnerable is a religious and social necessity that must be provided and protected by strict legislation and the application of their international charters.
To this end, through joint cooperation between the Catholic Church and Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, we declare and pledge that we will bring this document to global decision-makers, influential leaders and clergy of the world, relevant regional and international organizations, civil society organizations, religious institutions and think tanks. We seek to disseminate its principles at all regional and international levels, and call for their translation into policies, decisions, legislative texts, educational curricula and information materials.
We also demand that this document be considered and considered in all schools, universities and educational and educational institutions; to help create new generations of good and peace, and to defend the right of the oppressed, the oppressed and the wretched everywhere.
Finally, this document calls for reconciliation and brotherhood between all believers in religions, between believers and unbelievers, and all persons of good will, to make our document an appeal to every living conscience that repudiates abhorrent violence and blind extremism and to all those who love the principles of tolerance and brotherhood that religions call for and encourage; A certificate of the greatness of faith in God that unites the scattered hearts and becomes human to be a symbol of embrace between East and West, North and South, and all who believe that God created us to know and cooperate and live as loving brothers.
This is what we hope and seek to achieve in order to achieve universal peace in which everyone enjoys this life.
Abu Dhabi, February 4, 2019 Sheikh of Al-Azhar, His Holiness Pope Ahmed Tayeb Francis