Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, the Metropolitan Archbishop of Vienna, praised Saudi Arabia’s efforts to dissociate the Islamic religion from the phenomena of terrorism and isolation, stressing the importance of the Makkah Document in confronting hatred and extremist ideas and spreading tolerance and coexistence.
During an interview with Asharq Al-Awsat in Riyadh, Cardinal Schönborn said that he was visiting the Kingdom at the invitation of Dr. Muhammad Al-Issa, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League (MWL).
He noted that he “clearly sensed”, during his meetings in Riyadh, “full and complete interest” in efforts to separate Islam from the two crucibles of terrorism and isolation, “in which [the religion] was wrongly placed.”
“There is a clear interest from the Muslim World League to clarify the true idea of the religion of Islam,” he said.
The Archbishop of Vienna stressed that religion and faith were a personal matter. From this standpoint, he underlined the need to respect the person who holds another faith, and this, in his opinion, is one of the very important observations, “which I will carry in me on my return trip to Austria.”
He noted that the Makkah Document has emphasized the basic principles of the religion of Islam, including tolerance.
The Makkah Charter was endorsed on May 28, 2019 in Makkah, Saudi Arabia. It was approved by Islamic leaders of 139 countries and signed by around 1,200 prominent Muslim muftis and scholars. The document put forward a set of principles that supported anti-extremism, religious and cultural diversity, and legislation against hate and violence.
Cardinal Schönborn said that the Christians were working hard to reject attempts to attribute some actions to Christianity, such as burning the Holy Qur’an in Sweden.
“We reject these actions and work hard to dissociate them from Christians and Christianity. Therefore, I see it necessary that we work together to prove that such actions do neither belong to Islam nor to Christianity,” he remarked.
He stressed the need to initiate joint steps, between Muslims and Christians, to stand against moves that could offend one religion or another.
He explained that Christians should oppose actions that harm the Islamic religion, including offensive drawings, and say that these acts do not represent Christianity.
Similarly, Muslims must reject all acts against Christians by people who claim to be Muslims, according to the Cardinal.
“It is imperative that we work together, respect the other, and defend our values, and then the facts will become clear,” the Archbishop of Vienna told Asharq Al-Awsat.
He also underlined that the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad and the burning of the Holy Qur’an were not seen as freedom of expression, voicing his rejection to such actions.
Cardinal Schönborn pointed to joint work with the Muslim World League, saying: “On my way to Austria, several ideas come to my mind; not just one. For me, the path requires work and effort. In fact, I was very touched by this visit and the positively accelerating events in the Kingdom.”
He continued: “I have a dream, which is for Saudi youth to meet Austrian youth, to talk and discuss with each other because they are the future.”
According to the Archbishop of Vienna, avoiding a clash of civilizations requires a first and very important step centered on getting to know “our civilization and the civilization of the other.”
He pointed to a major problem in today’s world, represented by the fact that many do not know their own civilization and therefore lack knowledge of the civilization of the other.
“This sheds light on the need to strengthen education,” he said, adding: “I am carrying out a small project, which is to work together to promote peace and tolerance. We just need to expand a phrase I borrowed from Dr. Muhammad Al-Issa, that we “need patience and courage.””
The cardinal explained: “It is important for young people and children in schools to learn about their civilization, their religion, and the civilizations and religions of others… Unfortunately, few of us know Islam in my country, and therefore it is very important to provide them with positive and correct information about this religion.”
“The opposite is true, of course, as I heard that in the Kingdom, they started an educational program for children and youth to introduce them to other religions. This, in my opinion, is very important, so that the image of the other becomes clear to them,” he continued.
