The Light February 2020 02

February 2020 The
Light 14
A group of the world’s most respected Islamic
scholars and faith leaders, joined by experts
from governments and representatives of
civil society organizations signed a new charter
to build global peace, based on tolerance and religious
freedom. (WAM)
More than 500 religious and political leaders,
academics and civil society activists from
over 80 countries gathered in Abu Dhabi last
week to launch a set of principles that champion
the shared values of different religions and promote
joint action for the global common good
and against extremism.
It is notable that this took place in the Gulf,
and not in Europe or the US. The UAE has long
prided itself on its promotion of tolerance —
naming this past year the Year of Tolerance —
but the event was attended by religious leaders
from across the region, including Sheikh Mohammed
bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, Secretary
General of the Muslim World League in Saudi
Arabia.
The Charter of the New Alliance of Virtues
is devoid of most of the usual platitudes that can
form interfaith charters, and is based on an idea
that could be embraced by all without being
seen as owned by any one religion. This is because
while the original Alliance of Virtues
upon which this project was based is known of
through the Islamic tradition, it predates Islam.
The story goes that following the period of
conflict around Makkah known in Islam as the
Sacrilegious War, a Yemeni trader brought some
goods to the city, and sold them to a Makkah nobleman,
who refused to pay what was owed.
The trader climbed Mount Safar, the place for
public appeals at the time, and denounced his
fraudulent purchaser and all those from Makkah
who allowed one of their own to act unjustly.
Other noblemen were appalled by the treatment
meted out to this guest, in violation of the
rules of hospitality let alone the rules of trade,
and so convened an Alliance of Virtues that
committed to defend the values deemed common
among them, including the defense of the
weak against the powerful.
We know about this because Muhammad,
before his prophethood, was there, and spoke
about it later. And although it took place in pre-
Islamic Makkah, he said that such was the value
of this alliance that if he had been asked to join
after the coming of Islam he would have done
so.
And despite this endorsement from the
Prophet of Islam, the alliance can be viewed
with equal approbation by other faiths too. The
Alliance of Virtues was not formed by Christians
or Jews, but by people whose goal was simply to
do good work. This means that although this
new Alliance of Virtues is designed with the
Abrahamic faiths specifically in mind, it is open
to any who share the values it espouses.
But in the idea of shared values between the
faiths lies the question. The interfaith world has
long been dominated by a philosophy that seeks
to downplay differences and focus on commonalities.
There are plenty of commonalities to
choose from, particularly in the Abrahamic
faiths; for example, the belief in one God who
created the universe and all that’s in it, and is
directly concerned with the actions of humanity.
But there are also profound differences,
which will not be overcome by ignoring them.
The smallest Lahore-Ahmadiyya Mosque –
located in Suriname, South America.
I Shall Love All Mankind.
Moreover, the classical interfaith model is
dominated, particularly among the Christian
and Jewish participants, by religious liberals,
occasionally operating well outside the orthodox
parameters of their faiths. This domination