SHAFAQNA- “Without religion, Europe is unthinkable and the religions with their diverse traditions will be needed in the future to keep alive the ‘European Peace Project’,” as a result of the three-day European Congress in Paderborn, which was held last week with a dialogue of representatives of religion, Politics and science.
Rabbi Walter Rothschild said religion and state did not belong together. What religions could do in Europe in the future depends on religions, not on the state. In his opinion, the idea of a “Jewish-Christian civilization” comes too late: “There are hardly any Jews in Europe.”
The president of the Central Council of Muslims in Germany, Aiman A. Mazyek, considers a “Judeo-Christian civilization” to be a problematic historical construction intended to exclude Muslim heritage in Europe. Historically, Muslims were not only “fence-bearers” in Europe, but also exchanged with Christians in Spain or Sicily. “We have many historical developments, centuries-old imprints, even of Muslim presence in Europe itself. It is not a modern topic, so Europe needs Muslims – and Muslims need Europe – a properly understood faith turns a Muslim into a European patriot. ”
Referring to coexistence in Europe, Mazyek said that “I like to use the word ‘respect’ in this context, I believe that in this way we can claim for truth and tolerate each other in a tolerable way, then the dialogue can be very fruitful, because he makes clear, the similarities are usually much larger. ”
In the words of former German Ambassador to the Vatican, Annette Schavan, Europe is a difficult continent for religions and their followers. She noted that currently 80 percent of the world’s population lives “faith-based”. Europe must also arrive in this present. Bishop Hein complete the Ambassador’s speech and stated that “Europe without religion is an incomplete Europe.”
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