Dr. Al-Issa was honored to give the keynote address at the Rimini Forum, a gathering of European youth attended by more than one million people.
Dr. Al-Issa told the forum that freedom and law are intertwined, and that freedom is defined by the laws of each country along with each country’s societal values.
Dr. Al-Issa criticized the theory of the inevitable clash of civilizations, warning that “knowledge without values has created extremist theories.”
Dr. Al-Issa’s lecture touched on the deep feelings of faith present in every human being in both an intellectual and philosophical sense.
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At the invitation of the leadership of the Rimini Forum, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League (MWL) and Chairman of the Association of Muslim Scholars, Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa gave the keynote address at the Rimini Forum in Rimini, Italy. The Rimini Forum is the largest gathering in the world of European youth and promotes friendship among people. More than one million attendees including young people, university students, religious leaders, political leaders, intellectuals, and academics were present for Dr. Al-Issa’s remarks.
Dr. Al-Issa began his speech by stressing the importance of forums such as the Rimini Forum that raise awareness of the importance of understanding and cooperation among nations and peoples. He praised the forum’s willingness to address crucial issues such as racism and the theory of the inevitable clash of civilizations.
Dr. Al-Issa discussed the deep feelings of faith, both intellectual and philosophical, embedded within every human being, both believers and non-believers. He spoke of the “logic of wisdom,” which guides man to believe in the Creator and the human values instilled in man by the Creator. He stressed the importance of religious sensitivity.
His Excellency explained that the human values shared across civilizations and cultures are reflections of the “pure instinct” or values instilled in every human being by the Creator. He added that this instinct exists in every human soul, even if a person does not believe in the Creator. “These human values are an effect of the hidden belief in One God that has been ignored,” he said.
Dr. Al-Issa explained that human history is full of disagreements and diverse philosophies, but within those disagreements moral commonalities abound. Dr. Al-Issa said: “We, believers in Allah the Almighty, say that moral commonalities are reflections of the instinct of faith, which others describe as human values. We do not mind calling them “human values” because we are certain that these human values do not create themselves. This is the inner belief in One Creator, whether this faith was declared or hidden in the depths of the human soul.”
Dr. Al-Issa explained that when a person is stripped of this faith or ignores his inner belief he or she is confronted with an ambiguous and absurd existential crisis that leads to selfish materialism. He warned against materialistic excess because it leads to selfishness and dangerous consequences for world peace and communal harmony.
He rejected the theory of the inevitable clash of civilizations proposed by Samuel Huntington in his book, “The Clash of Civilizations.” He warned that by omitting discussion of common human values the author pre-determined his theory on the clash of civilizations and gave life to several extremist ideologies. He said Huntington’s “extremist theory was applauded and promoted by many parties in the East and West.”
Dr. Al-Issa explained that the MWL and its partners around the world founded the “Alliance of Civilizations,” to serve as an alternative to the clash of civilizations. He noted that the international community, headed by the United Nations, recognized the importance of an “Alliance of Civilizations” and established an international organization for this purpose.
His Excellency detailed the “instinct of faith” and explained that Allah the Almighty instilled this instinct in all human souls. He also explained that religion awakens this instinct and that, in turn, determines the moral values of individuals and societies. He added: "We note that knowledge without values produces extremist theories and also lead to man manufacturing weapons of mass destruction."
Dr. Al-Issa also discussed freedom, stressing that freedom is an essential part of the foundation of both human and religious values. He stated that freedom and law are intertwined, and that freedom is defined by the laws of each country along with each country’s societal values. He added that there is a need to differentiate between freedom and chaos while also ensuring respect and dignity for all.
His Excellency offered an analytical critique of the work and ideas of prominent Western thinkers, including philosopher and clergyman Luigi Giussani, who presented a unique proposal on religious knowledge in his famous work, “Religious Sense.”
