The global footprint of Islam is “increasing,” a fact with which those engaged in interreligious dialogue must contend, especially in Europe, a leading proponent of such dialogue has told Crux Now.
It is a challenge unfolding simultaneously between Muslims and adherents of other traditions including Christianity, and within Islam itself.
“We have to see how we can accommodate these new phenomena in Europe, in particular, and how we can cope and preserve peace and dialogue with this new reality,” he said.
“We know that there is a big division between Muslims, Shias and Sunnis,” says António de Almeida-Ribeiro, acting general secretary of the Lisbon-based King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue (KAICIID), “but it’s important to try to find some common ground of understanding.”
“That’s what we do in KAICIID,” he said.
A career diplomat who joined the Portuguese foreign service in 1979, de Almeida-Ribeiro has represented his country in various posts around the world, including billets at the EU in Brussels, in Argentina, Egypt, Austria, and the Holy See.
The challenges present themselves not only in Europe but also in areas where Islam has been present for centuries, including the Arab world in which the religion was founded and from which it spread.
The situation in the Holy Land is particularly grave, de-Almeida-Ribeiro said, noting also how the crisis illustrates the urgency of the need for more dialogue.
“I think the situation is not positive for the region and in the whole area in particular,” he said, “but that’s one more reason for us to do more and to put people together around the same table.”
KAICIID’s acting general secretary was in Rome this week for meetings with partner organizations to discuss the interreligious landscape in the Arab world.
In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with Crux Now, de-Almeida-Ribeiro said it is also necessary to see “how we can cope and preserve peace and dialogue with this new reality.”
“It’s not easy sometimes, but I think it’s possible,” he told Crux Now.
During Wednesday’s general audience, Pope Leo XIV praised the dialogue effort, which comes at a vital time for the region, particularly with tension continuing to rise in the Holy Land.
“In a particular way, I gladly renew my welcome to the members of the Steering Committee of the Interreligious Platform for Dialogue and Cooperation [IPDC] in the Arab World, who are present today,” Leo said.
“I thank you for your cooperation with the King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue [KAICIID],” Leo said.
The Holy See is a founding observer of KAICIID, which was launched in 2012 by Saudi Arabia, Austria, and Spain, in the wake of a 2007 meeting between Pope Benedict XVI and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. Originally headquartered in Vienna, KAICIID moved to Lisbon in 2022.
Leo prayed that the efforts “to promote peaceful coexistence in the Arab region will indeed bear much fruit.”
“Upon each of you and your families, I invoke the joy and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ,” Leo also said.
De Almeida-Ribeiro told Crux Now the promotion of interreligious dialogue in the Arab world is important because it’s “a region in which tensions and difficulties among religions are very visible.”
“So we try to promote among them possible dialogue in order to reduce tensions, combat hate speech, and promote harmony among the different leaders. This has been a successful process, but it’s ongoing. There is always something to do,” he said.
Almeida-Ribeiro also said religious leaders could play a key role in the resolution of conflicts such as those taking place between Russia and Ukraine, and Israel and Palestine.
“We think that the religious leaders are very important partners in peace processes, so I think that religions here in Europe should and could play a role,” he said.
“One of the things that should be common in all religions is promoting peace. This should be something common to all of us. The second thing would be to promote human dignity. This should be and must be common ground,” he added.
A transcript of Crux Now‘s conversation with Almeida-Ribeiro is below, edited for edited for clarity and length…
Crux Now: You’re in Rome at the moment because KAICIID has been supporting an event by an organization that looks at interreligious dialogues within the Arab region. What have been the significant talking points of the last couple of days?
This steering committee meets regularly every year. It’s the first time they meet in Europe and the first time here in Rome. We had the cooperation of the Vatican dicastery for interreligious dialogue.
The meeting and the discussions were, in a way, confidential because it’s among them only. Mainly, they discuss what could make dialogue possible or more sociable in the Arab region.
There are Muslim leaders and Christian leaders from that region, so they discuss internally how to promote a better understanding and better respect for each of the professions.
What are the main issues concerning interreligious dialogue within the Arab world?
It’s a region in which tensions and difficulties among religions are very visible. So we try to promote among them possible dialogue in order to reduce tensions, combat hate speech, and promote harmony among the different leaders.
This has been a successful process, but it’s ongoing. There is always something to do.
It’s a work in progress, I would say.
I think it’s a very innovative and I would say unique project in the Middle East to promote this dialogue between Muslims and Christians.
When I speak about Muslims, I mean both Sunnis and Shiites and Christians is Orthodox, Catholics, the Maronites. It’s a very interesting project, and we really promote an open discussion among them.
And I think all of them were very happy with the results.
At the end of the meeting Tuesday, I think all of them were pretty confident that these kinds of discussions will help them and the respective communities to do better and to respect each other.
Have there been any sort of key events that have moved the work forward? For example, the human fraternity document that Pope Francis signed in 2019, or his visit to Iraq in 2021. Do these gestures make a difference to the work you’re doing?
These visits and interventions by the Holy See are extremely helpful.
The pope himself, during the general audience on Wednesday, mentioned and praised the work that KAICIID and the IPDC are doing to promote dialogue among the different religions in the Arab region.
So we are confident that this is a good initiative that will help people talk to each other in a more open and successful way in the region.
Do you have any concerns about what is going on in the Holy Land at the moment regarding interreligious dialogue?
I think the situation is not positive for the region and in the whole area in particular, but that’s one more reason for us to do more and to put people together around the same table.
You have talked about religious dialogue within Islam. What are the main debates that are preoccupying Islamic scholars today?
We know that there is a big division between Muslims, Shias and Sunnis. But it’s important to try to find some common ground of understanding between them.
That’s what we do in KAICIID.
We try to put them together and encourage them to find common positions, common ideas, common goals in order to avoid further tensions and further conflicts and further divisions.
It’s not easy.
It’s hard work we have to do, but we still believe that there is common ground for understanding.
And do any of these debates that are happening within the Islamic world impact on how it interacts with the Western world? How it interacts with the Church?
The Church advocates dialogue.
This is very clear.
Today, as it was with Pope Francis before, and even with Pope Benedict: KAICIID was founded after a meeting between the King, the then-Saudi King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, and Pope Benedict XVI.
They both thought that it would be a good idea to create an institution that would promote dialogue among the different religions and beliefs.
We strongly believe in freedom of religion, freedom of belief, and that’s what we try to work towards. It’s a fact that roughly 80% of the world population has a connection with religion. 80% is a low estimate.
So, religious leaders are really partners, or should be partners, to help reduce tensions, promote dialogue, and avoid crises.
Their word is listened to worldwide.
When the pope speaks, for example, he does not only speak to Catholics. When he speaks, the world listens to what the pope says, and other religious leaders it’s the same.
So we think that their contribution to peace and dialogue, and to prevent tensions and combative speech, are essential.
One of the things that Pope Leo has been most famous for is his stance on artificial intelligence with the recent encyclical. How was that received within different religious traditions?
It was a very important document for reflection.
We still don’t know what exactly are the consequences of all these new worlds, especially regarding artificial intelligence, but we have to start working very soon – immediately – to try to avoid the scenario where artificial intelligence creates more problems than benefits.
It’s work that has to be done very urgently, but I don’t think that we are there yet.
The Holy See made a very, very important contribution with this encyclical.
Going back a little bit to what we were talking about earlier with the intra-Islamic dialogue, what do you think the future holds for Islam in the 21st century?
Islam is a very important religion with a great presence in the Middle East and in other regions of the world, including in Europe.
It’s increasing, as we all know.
So we have to see how we can accommodate these new phenomena in Europe, in particular, and how we can cope and preserve peace and dialogue with this new reality.
It’s not easy sometimes, but I think it’s possible.
That’s what we try to promote, to have societies in which all confessions exist and all confessions respect each other.
Not easy, but not impossible.
Is there a relationship between peace within religions and peace within countries?
One of the things that should be common in all religions is promoting peace. This should be something common to all of us.
The second thing would be to promote human dignity.
This should be and must be common ground. Common ground for all religions. Having this in mind, I think that there is a ground for a dialogue all over the world.
When we put people around the table from different regions, we always say that you have to promote peace. There is no way that one religion promotes violence or wars.
It does not make sense. It’s absurd.
Therefore, putting them together at the same time and telling them that each religion has to promote peace makes sense.
Religion must be linked to peace and the promotion of humanity.
At this moment in history, we have a number of conflicts taking place across the world. Ukraine, and Israel and Palestine come to mind. Can greater understanding between the world’s religions help bring these conflicts to a close?
We think that the religious leaders are very important partners in peace processes, so I think that religions here in Europe should and could play a role in the conflicts that you’ve mentioned.
It should be like that.
I don’t say that it has always been like that, but there is space for that.
