VATICAN ENGAGEMENTS a Muslim Theologian’S Journey in Muslim–Catholic Dialogue
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VATICAN ENGAGEMENTS A Muslim Theologian’s Journey in Muslim–Catholic Dialogue aref ali nayed I vatican engagements VATICAN ENGAGEMENTS A Muslim Theologian’s Journey in Muslim–Catholic Dialogue ≤≥ Aref Ali Nayed volume 1 For my teachers and students at the Uthman Pasha Madrasa in Tripoli, Libya In loving memory of muhammad elmsalate and abu bakr ra¢boob © 2015. Aref Ali Nayed/Kalam Research & Media, Abu Dhabi. All rights reserved. kalam research & media P.O. Box 78000, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates www.kalamresearch.com isbn 978-9948-446-74-3 paperback isbn 978-9948-446-75-0 hardback The Publication is in copyright. Subject to statutory exception and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements, no reproduction of any part may take place without written permission of the author. Cover Image © St. Peter’s, Vatican / Sohail Nakhooda/ Kalam Research & Media Back cover author portrait © Kalam Research & Media Design and typesetting by Sohail Nakhooda Printed in the UAE contents ≤≥ Foreword vii p art o ne : th e reg en sb urg l ec tur e 1. Faith, Reason and the University: Memories and Reflections 3 by Pope Benedict XVI 2. A Muslim’s Commentary on Benedict XVI’s “Faith, Reason and the University: Memories and Reflections” 14 by Aref Ali Nayed p art t wo : th e ma rti ne tti d eb ate 3. Unbridled Will or Logos? The God of Islam and the Christian God 39 by Alessandro Martinetti 4. Our God and Your God is One 44 by Aref Ali Nayed 5. God Does Not Violate the First and Universal Principles of Being 57 by Alessandro Martinetti p art t hr ee: de bat e wi th mi ch ael c uy pe rs o n s ac re d int er pre ta ti on 6. Tradition as Seen by the Muslim Faith, Yesterday and Today 105 by Michael Cuypers 7. On Muslim and Catholic Approaches to Sacred Hermeneutics 112 by Aref Ali Nayed p art f ou r: t he b rad le y lec tu re 8. Compassion and Understanding in Islam 121 p art f iv e: t he ya le l ec tur e 137 9. The Same God? 139 pa rt si x: c ar di nal t au ran a nd t he ei d mes sa ge 10. Christians and Muslims: Called to Promote a Culture of Peace 153 by Cardinal Jean-Louis Tauran 11. A Muslim’s Message of Thanks for the Vatican’s “Message for the End of Ramadan” 156 by Aref Ali Nayed pa rt se ve n: t he m agd i al lam c on tr ove rs y 12. “Benedict XVI Tells Us That We Must Conquer Fear” 165 by Magdi Cristiano Allam 13. Comments on the Papal Baptism of Magdi Allam 171 by Aref Ali Nayed 14. “Our Ailing World Did Not Need Another Provocation” 173 Interview with El País 15. “May We Be Permitted to Express in Turn Our Own Displeasure” 177 by Federico Lombardi pa rt ei gh t: a c om mon w or d ini ti ati ve 16. The Promise of “A Common Word” 181 17. Frequently Asked Questions About the “Common Word Initiative” 186 18. Rome Press Conference 191 19. Interview with the Catholic News Service 203 20. From Security to Compassion 206 21. Caring for the Young 210 pa rt ni ne : the ol og ica l es say s an d lec tu re 22. Ayatology and Rahmatology: Islam and the Environment 219 23. Attacking the Essence: On Why Muslims Are So Hurt by the Danish Jyllands-Posten Outrage 227 24. The Usurpation of God’s Greatness 233 25. Ibrahim and Islam 240 26. Dialogical Engagement as Vigilant Remembrance (Dhikr) 244 27. Doubt and Certitude 248 28. The Muslim’s Way to Allah 258 29. Reading Scripture Together: Toward a Sacred Hermeneutics of Togetherness 263 Index 271 foreword ≤≥ aref ali nayed is a leading muslim theologian and expert on Muslim–Christian relations. During the last decade Nayed has been one of the key proponents of the Common Word Initiative, which brought together an impressive number of Muslim theologians, schol- ars and intellectuals to promote peace with their Christian counter- parts. Nayed’s own contribution to inter-faith understanding, how- ever, pre-dates the Common Word initiative, and in this volume we bring together his published and unpublished essays of the engage- ments he has had over many years on a number of critical issues with the Roman Catholic Church. That the focus of his writings has been on the Catholic Church, Catholic clergy and lay experts for much of the last two decades should be no surprise. Dr. Nayed, uniquely for an orthodox Muslim scholar in this time, studied and taught at pontifical universities in Rome, par- ticularly the Gregorian and at the Pontifical Institute for Arabic and Islamic Studies (PISAI). Born and raised in Libya, he was steeped in traditional knowledge, studying with many of the greatest living scholars and sages from his country. Living in exile in North America he finished his secondary education in the U.S. and completed his undergraduate, graduate and post-graduate studies in Canada attaining degrees in engineering and philosophy. While he is rooted in the North African traditions of Maliki jurisprudence, Ash¢ari theology and the ancient spirituality of Islam, he also formidable grasp of Christian theology, western philoso- phical traditions, hermeneutics, semiotics and speech-act theory. This unique background makes him an invaluable interlocutor and bridge builder between two religious traditions and civilizations. Nayed’s sincerity in the search for truth and peace is immediately apparent in the various essays in this volume. His theological elabora- foreword tion is eclectic, yet always firmly rooted in his own religious tradition. He does not shy away from robustly articulating and defending the verities of his own faith, but neither does he trivialize or mock the Other. His approach is always and in everything respectful and gene- rous in spirit. His theological vision is always and in everything sus- tained by compassion and a hope that knowledge and prayer can overcome dark horizons of hatred and ignorance. It is precisely be- cause he takes the Other seriously that he holds the task of “co-theol- ogizing”, as he puts it, to be of existential significance and urgency. Working on theology with people from other religious traditions is a vital hermeneutical key for understanding both the Other and ourselves. This volume then has no other purpose than to serve as a window to this Libyan theologian’s contribution to inter-faith understanding whilst also being an accessible source for his writings on Catholicism. Most of the material was written during his time in Rome, in Muslim- Catholic encounters, for Catholic publications, or on issues that tou- ched on aspects of the Catholic church. There was no effort to maintain rigorous chronological order in the presentation of these essays, except that we have divided them into themes for easier accessibility. And in order to preserve accuracy and respect in the conversations, we have reproduced in full here both Pope Benedict XVI’s text of his Regensburg address and also those of Nayed’s interlocutors. The next volume will include a response to Professor Alessandro Martinetti’s final rejoinder, which Dr. Nayed was unable to prepare due to the onset of the Libyan revolution in 2011, which forced him to attend to the diplomatic and political needs of his country. We are deeply grateful to PISAI, Dr Sandro Magister (Chiesa.com), Professor Alessandro Martinetti, Matthey Sherry (who ably translated from Italian all of Professor Martinetti’s responses), Haroon Sugich Muhammad Ridwaan, Sarah Louise Nakhooda, Chris Galloway, and Muhammad and Mustafa Ansa, for their assistance in making this publication possible. sohail younus nakhooda Kalam Research & Media, Abu Dhabi part one ≤≥ the regensburg lecture chapter i ≤≥ Faith, Reason and the University: Memories and Reflections* pope benedict xvi Your Eminences, Your Magnificences, Your Excellencies,Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, t is a moving experience for me to be back again in the university and to be able once again to give a lecture at this podium. I think Iback to those years when, after a pleasant period at the Freisinger Hochschule, I began teaching at the University of Bonn. That was in 1959, in the days of the old university made up of ordinary professors. The various chairs had neither assistants nor secretaries, but in recom- pense there was much direct contact with students and in particular among the professors themselves. We would meet before and after lessons in the rooms of the teaching staff. There was a lively exchange with historians, philosophers, philologists and, naturally, between the two theological faculties. Once a semester there was a dies academicus, when professors from every faculty appeared before the students of the entire university, making possible a genuine experience of universitas —something that you too, Magnificent Rector, just mentioned—the experience, in other words, of the fact that despite our specializations which at times make it difficult to communicate with each other, we made up a whole, working in everything on the basis of a single rationality with its various aspects and sharing responsibility for the right use of reason—this reality became a lived experience. The uni- versity was also very proud of its two theological faculties. It was clear * Lecture delivered on Tuesday, 12th September 2006, at the Aula Magna of the Uni- versity of Regensburg. Reprinted with permission from the Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 3 vatican engagements that, by inquiring about the reasonableness of faith, they too carried out a work which is necessarily part of the “whole” of the universitas scientiarum, even if not everyone could share the faith which theolo- gians seek to correlate with reason as a whole.