Williams to Unite Anglicans and Muslims with Trust in Al-Azhar Meetings

In September, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rev Rowan Williams, will head for a Anglican-Muslim dialogue in Cairo, Egypt, accompanied by a select team of scholars and church people. The third meeting of its kind will be taken place on 8th-9th September in the Al-Azhar University, the Muslim world’s leading religious institution.

According to the Anglican Communion, the dialogue is part of a process which provides a means for the Communion to develop and foster positive relationships of trust and co-operation with Muslim communities. The Anglican Communion’s contribution to the dialogue is administered on behalf of Archbishop Williams by NIFCON, the Anglican Communion’s Inter Faith Network.

Tension between Christians and Muslims is a great challenge to the world. Religious leaders from both groups have been trying hard to reconcile with each other and have acknowledged the importance of mutual understanding through communication. Anglicans are taking a leading role in this initiative.

During the meeting, Christians and Muslims are to share their faith both in similarities and differences. The experience both of Christians who live in predominantly Muslim contexts and of Muslims living in predominantly Christian contexts is also expected to be addressed.

Zaki Badawi, founder of the Muslim College in London commented that many Muslim leaders have high expectations from this dialogue with the Archbishop of Canterbury, leader of some 77 million Anglicans worldwide.

“It is a very significant moment in the history of our two faiths and especially coming from a man of his stature and learning,” he said.

The following is the text of the original agreement for dialogue between the Anglican Communion and the Al-Azhar University:

"We affirm the importance of building on the excellent relations between the Anglican Communion and the al-Azhar al-Sharif.

We acknowledge the brotherly relations between the Grand Sheikh of al-Azhar, Dr. Mohamed Sayed Tantawy and Dr. George Carey, the Archbishop of Canterbury and the President of the Anglican Communion.

We believe that friendship which overcomes religious, ethnic and national differences is a gift of the Creator in whom we all believe.

We recognise that both sides need to accept each other in a straightforward way so as to be able to convey the message of peace to the world.

We believe that direct dialogue results in restoration of the image of each in the eyes of the other.

Continuing from the visit of Dr. Carey to al-Azhar al-Sharif in October 1995 and the visit of Dr. Tantawy, the Grand Sheikh of al-Azhar al Sharif, to Lambeth Palace in 1997, and the return visit of Dr. Carey to al-Azhar al-Sharif in November 1999,

And because of our common faith in God and our responsibility to witness against indifference to religion on the one hand and religious fanaticism on the other,

We hope that we may contribute to international efforts to achieve justice, peace, and the welfare of all humanity. And because, we hope...

Resourced by the positive experiences in our long history as Christians and Muslims living together both in Egypt and the United Kingdom and many other parts of the world."

As the dialogue concludes, Archbishop Williams will deliver a lecture on 11th September, and will visit a social and development project which has been established largely because of the good relationships between personnel at the Al-Azhar University and the Anglican (Episcopal) Diocese of Egypt and North Africa.