Taking the Wind out of the Sails of Fanaticism
The Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies, founded by Prince Hassan, brother of the deceased King Hussein of Jordan, is currently involved in preparations for the Second World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies, scheduled to take place in Amman in June 2006.
Planning for the World Congress
The World Congress has already been announced on the institute's Internet web site. Yet, things remain fully calm in the sandstone brick villa located in the heart of Amman. "No stress," says Hasan Abu Nimah dismissively. "We have more than a year's time and very many supporters. We'll manage fine!"
Nonetheless, the Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies in Amman is preparing for its largest event to date. Next year, thousands of participants are expected in the Jordanian capital for the Second World Congress for Middle Eastern Studies (WOCMES).
The first WOCMES took place in 2001, with more than 1500 experts from around the world traveling to the conference venue of Mainz, Germany. At the opening ceremony, Prince Hassan promised to stage the next congress in Jordan.
"Holding WOCMES here in Amman is extremely important for us," said Hasan Abu Nimah. "We find ourselves drawn ever more rapidly into the process of globalization and, on the way, we have noticed that many problems in various parts of the world are connected and interdependent. WOCMES is intended to be a forum where these issues can be discussed."
Since 1994, many renowned scholars and experts have been guests of the Royal Institute for Inter-Faith Studies, including Annemarie Schimmel, who passed away in 2003, and the American Bernhard Lewis.
Confessional encounter
Today, it is a place where Christians, Muslims, and Jews can reach out a hand to each other, either as conference participants, guest scholars, or as contributors to either of the two scholarly journals published by the institute in Arabic and English. Research at the institute is interdisciplinary and the common goal is that of preventing fanaticism.
The main task of the institute remains the promotion of dialogue between Christians and Muslims. In addition to its work at the regional and global levels, emphasis is increasingly being placed at the national level, as Jordan continues to provide a good example of how various religions can co-exist alongside each other.
"You can rarely tell the difference between Muslims and Christians in Jordan, not only in term of outward appearances, but also in terms of their outlook on life and way of thinking," claims Abur Nimah. "No one will come up to you and say, ‘I am a Muslim' or ‘I am a Christian'."
Conflicts resulting from aggressive Islamisation
The diplomat Abu Nimah admits, however, that the co-existence of Christians and Muslims in Jordan is no longer as harmonious as it once was. Ever greater numbers of Christians are emigrating – not only due to economic difficulties, but also because radical groups are forcing those with different views or beliefs to the margins of society through an aggressive Islamisation of public life.
"At most, there are only 150,000 Christians still living in Jordan," estimates Mohammed Haddad, an expert from Irbid University. "Twenty years ago, the number was twice as high."
Abu Nimah sees the main causes for the increasing popularity of an ideological, totalitarian Islam as lying in the growth of social and political injustice.
He considers opening up such issues for discussion and identifying the causes of political fanaticism as being among the main tasks of the institute. "Religions will never disappear, nor do we want to exclude religion from everyday life," says Abu Nimah.
"Falling back on religion or the supernatural for political reasons would become superfluous if only government provided better leadership and there were better international protection mechanisms to provide for more justice. Instead, we face ever more despair and hopelessness."
The "Message of Amman" as an alternative model
The Jordanian Royal Family has adopted a two-fold approach to taking the wind out of the sails of the country's fanatics. On the one hand, they are engaging in a process of economic and political reform, and on the other, are promoting a modern interpretation of the Koran. The later is a mission to which the Hashemite Dynasty regards itself as being particularly qualified, considering that it can trace its lineage directly back to the Prophet Mohammed.
The so-called "Message of Amman," which King Abdullah II presented towards the end of 2004, advocates a liberal and enlightened Islam. The Institute for Inter-Faith Studies has adopted the Message of Amman as its programmatic position.
As a former diplomat at the United Nations, Hasan Abu Nimah doesn't believe that debates over the common features of religions nor a new interpretation of the Koran can solve the fundamental conflicts in the Middle East. The central conflict, that of Palestine, is, after all, not religious, but political. Allowances have to be made, however, for altered circumstances.
"Over time, the religious dimension of the conflict has grown," said Abu Nimah. "The Jews base their claims on the Bible, and the Muslims, who are fighting for their rights in Palestine, refer to Islam and regard the holy sites of Jerusalem as an apparent God-given pledge. It starts getting rather dangerous when one accepts this mixture of politics and religion as being normal. We have to concentrate on the peaceful values that we all hold dear – respect, tolerance, and a mutual regard for human rights."
Martina Sabra
© Qantara.de 2005
Translation from German: John Bergeron
Qantara.de
The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty
"Banning Clothing Is a Violation of Human Rights"
Article 18 of the Declaration on Human Rights guarantees the right to freedom of religion. But increasingly many countries are outlawing religious dress, a trend that the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty tries to counter. Imogen Foulkes reports