Pope John Paul II addresses Grand Imam Mohamed Sayed Al Tantawy
Al-Azhar, Cairo - February 24, 2000
click to view
After visiting Pope Shenouda III on Thursday, February 24, 2000, the Holy Father met with His Eminence Sheikh Mohamed Sayed Al Tantawy, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar. At the end of his meeting with the Grand Imam, the Holy Father made a few extemporaneous remarks in English.
“Thank you for your kind words. Permit me to continue with your ideas. God created human beings, man and woman, and gave to them the world, the earth to cultivate. There is a strict connection between religions, religious faith and culture. Islam is a religion. Christianity is a religion. Islam has also become a culture. Christianity has also become a culture. So it is very important to meet personAlyties representing Islamic culture in Egypt.
I express my great gratitude for this opportunity and I greet all the eminent scholars gathered here. I am convinced that the future of the world depends on the various cultures and on inter-religious dialogue. For it is as St. Thomas Aquinas said:
“Genus humanum arte et ratione vivit.” The life of the human race consists in culture and the future of the human race consists in culture. I thank your university, the biggest center of Islamic culture. I thank those who are developing Islamic culture and I am grateful for what you are doing to maintain the dialogue with the Christian culture. All this I say in the name of the future of our communities, not only of our communities but also of the nations and of the humanity represented in Islam and Christianity.”
“Thank you for your kind words. Permit me to continue with your ideas. God created human beings, man and woman, and gave to them the world, the earth to cultivate. There is a strict connection between religions, religious faith and culture. Islam is a religion. Christianity is a religion. Islam has also become a culture. Christianity has also become a culture. So it is very important to meet personAlyties representing Islamic culture in Egypt.
I express my great gratitude for this opportunity and I greet all the eminent scholars gathered here. I am convinced that the future of the world depends on the various cultures and on inter-religious dialogue. For it is as St. Thomas Aquinas said:
“Genus humanum arte et ratione vivit.” The life of the human race consists in culture and the future of the human race consists in culture. I thank your university, the biggest center of Islamic culture. I thank those who are developing Islamic culture and I am grateful for what you are doing to maintain the dialogue with the Christian culture. All this I say in the name of the future of our communities, not only of our communities but also of the nations and of the humanity represented in Islam and Christianity.”