JEDDAH: Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa, secretary-general of the Muslim World League and chairman of the Organization of Muslim Scholars, delivered the keynote address at the opening of a high-level meeting of the Expert Group at the Oxford Center for Islamic Studies.
His address emphasized the importance of activating religious dialogue in a way that builds bridges and moves beyond repetitive discussions and recurring themes.
Al-Issa said that the league’s impactful dialogue efforts follow two tracks. The first is within the Islamic world, across all schools of thought and traditions, leading to the Charter of Makkah and the Charter of Building Bridges Between Islamic Schools of Thought and Sects, both commended by member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation.
The OIC, in particular, recommended adopting the Charter of Makkah in religious, cultural and educational institutions across the Islamic world.
The second track is between the Islamic world and others, resulting in the “Building Bridges Between East and West” initiative at the UN headquarters in New York and the “Protecting Global Youth from Extremist and Violent Ideologies” initiative at the UN Office in Geneva.
