Renovation through globalisation

By Milad Hanna

The first paragraph states: "Emphasis of dialogue and respect between cultures and religions is a precondition for creating a sense of affinity between different peoples."

This article focuses on the conflict between the two major religions of the signatories of the Barcelona Declaration. The evolution of these two religions, and the similarity between them, will lead to dialogue, especially within the framework of globalisation. Although this process can lead to the restoration of fundamentalism, dialogue and the information revolution can lead to cross-fertilisation between Christianity and Islam. This will be the starting point for cultural convergence, and hence the discovery and expansion of common ground. The discovery of shared traits, in turn, will lead to acceptance of the other as a means of achieving coexistence. The process is cumulative, and will take place whenever the aim of dialogue is rapprochement and not the discussion of controversial religious texts.

The Egyptian example of coexistence between Copts and Muslims may be seen as an effective model that has been successful in overcoming obstacles. Egyptian Islam affected, and, by the same token, was affected by, Coptic Christianity. Coexistence and acceptance of the other have been possible. By examining this case, it is possible to imagine mechanisms and legislation that could prevent the accumulation of individual or collective frustrations.

The most widespread and influential religions in the world today are Christianity and Islam. Their cultural paths, from inception to globalisation, are similar. Christianity was born almost 2,000 years ago. Its propagation was slow and steady, and probably accomplished verbally through the apostles and disciples of Jesus Christ. The new religion then spread to various peoples. When Jews and pagans embraced the new religion, they posed some legitimate questions to the apostles. The answers took the form of what came to be known as the Epistles, which constitute the greater part of the New Testament. Paul alone wrote 13 of them. They are considered to be among the most philosophically, intellectually and theologically sophisticated documents of the time. Historical records indicate that the Epistles preceded the Gospels; they were written between 70AD and 100AD. Subsequently, the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John appeared.

In less than two centuries, Christianity spread like wildfire. It spread to most of the countries of Mare Nostrum (now the Mediterranean Sea). The new faith was fundamentalist and pure, unequivocally stating that "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God".

The history of Christianity, however, is not wholly glorious, contrary to what some who seek to delude their followers would like to believe. Christianity witnessed events and propagated a creed more acceptable in its early years than today. These elements include the infallibility of the Pope and the necessity of absolute obedience to him, as if he were superhuman; disobedience bears the punishment of excommunication. Indulgences, through which a place in the kingdom of Heaven was bought, constitute another issue which does not sit easily with the belief systems of today. Then there is the Inquisition, during which the Catholic Church put scientists on trial and sometimes sentenced them to death because their research contradicted scripture or dogma.

In the past few years, after the disintegration of the Soviet Union, religion has again become a cultural force to be reckoned with. In parallel, a single superpower emerged and the term "globalisation" was imposed. Some of those who partake in the Western Christian civilisation of Europe felt that the only way of countering the sense of disorientation engendered by globalisation was to return to "fundamentalism". They delved into the heritage of the Christian civilisation and retrieved stories, texts and historical events, which they identified as "basic sources". The proponents of this new fundamentalism often fitted these texts and events into the modern context of scientific and technological achievements.

In the Western world, an alliance was struck between Jewish and Christian fundamentalists, so that the idea of a Judaeo-Christian civilisation became not only culturally acceptable, but an influential trend perhaps most strongly united by its two components' common hatred for Islam. New sects with fundamentalist roots spread, seeking to return to the roots of Christian morality, or to preserve "family values". Most visible in the US, such groups captured the attention of the media. The "Promise Keepers", for instance, were able to organise an event last October in which more than a million individuals participated. The Jehovah's Witnesses were also rejuvenated. Religious fundamentalism, in other words, is not limited to Egypt. It is rife in the West, albeit in different forms.

If we study Islamic civilisation from inception to globalisation, we find common aspects with Christianity, which may be so far-reaching as to constitute an "intellectual system". Islam started out as an ascetic, idealised religion. Persecuted because of their new message, its earliest adherents engaged in a "holy war", a mission eventually transformed into a religious duty. Their flight to Madina was also enshrined as one of the pillars of Islam. The epoch of the Rightly-guided Caliphs was eventful and rich. But before the growth of a vast Islamic empire during the Umayyad period, division and strife had broken out. Divisions between Sunnis and Shi'ites have lasted until today.

Islamic civilisation witnessed recurrent periods of schism and unification. As was the case for Christianity, Islam witnessed periods of tolerance and intellectual efflorescence, as well as epochs of tyranny and violence.

There are events and texts in both Islamic and Christian civilisation that reflect rejection of other cultures, as well as elements of compassion, empathy and acceptance.

The national liberation movements of the twentieth century opposed modern Western imperialism, for the most part, and reflected a desire for emancipation and self-determination. Some of these movements represented a fusion between national and religious liberation, as was the case of the Mahdi in Sudan and the Algerian liberation movement.

As globalisation spread throughout the '90s, the United States, the sole remaining global superpower, attempted to present this process as one of Americanisation, i.e., the dominance of the consumerism and materialism inherent in the "American way of life".

This trend has mobilised other civilisations including the Islamic civilisation. Globalisation in its crude outward form became a pretext for a return to the roots of one's culture or civilisation, generally known as fundamentalism. Political movements emerged, calling upon society to conform to its earliest patterns of behaviour. This was truly what Samuel Huntington described as the "clash of civilisations".

In the Muslim world, the fundamentalist trend evolved from the "Islamic awakening" to "political Islam". In a country like Egypt, where the 1923 Constitution embodied liberal ideals, the general cultural climate abruptly became biased in favour of religious thought. This was the case for both Christianity and Islam. The gradual rise of national identity would have constituted the natural course of events, but history often evolves in unexpected directions. Globalisation and issues of cultural identity became important. The debate was not limited to abstract thought, but also had an impact on political equilibrium, domestically and internationally.

Globalisation has released the potential energies of religious civilisations as one aspect of the fight to preserve cultural identity and specificity. "Acceptance of the other" is no longer an easy matter. Tolerance and acceptance could only be simple in a period during which liberal or left-wing ideas prevailed.

A sense of religious belonging provides spiritual and emotional security, a basic human need during this critical transitional period. Belonging is a source of pride for the faithful. Religious ardour is a prerequisite of jihad, the degree of enthusiasm for which varies from one individual to the other.

The other side of the coin is that, however different religions may be, they must contain values and concepts which are acceptable to all humanity. Had it not been for that dimension, human beings would have continued to engage in perpetual warfare until the conflict had been decisively resolved in favour of a certain religion. Religious concepts, however, have continually evolved from one period to the other to match human emotional and spiritual needs, which change in space and time.

Within this framework, it was possible in the past and will be in the future to create a cultural climate of coexistence between religions by discovering common ground with regard to values and concepts, different creeds notwithstanding. As cultural orientations in general grow and became more refined in any society, so do we come to discover the richness resulting from that diversity and become more amenable to seeing the positive aspects of "accepting the other": acceptance of another dogma, creed, race or culture, or at least acceptance of coexistence.

This concept may have been the pivotal point of the Report on Culture and Development, entitled "Creative Human Diversity" and prepared by a group of distinguished intellectuals under the leadership of Javier Perez de Cuellar, a former secretary-general of the United Nations, which was published in 1995. The Supreme Council for Culture in Egypt translated and published this document in full. An international conference entitled "The Power of Culture", held in Stockholm from 30 March until 2 April this year, endorsed a plan of action to which governments are bound when they formulate their cultural policy. This, of course, will be impossible in the Arab world unless intellectuals, regardless of individual orientation, endorse the ideas advocated by this significant document.

The world is at a crossroads. Globalisation is taking its course, affecting the economy, the military, media, culture, machines and politics. It is futile to entertain the delusion that this current can be halted. Globalisation has indeed led to the emergence of fundamentalism -- a natural attempt to prevent disorientation and alienation. Globalisation itself, however, will resolve the conflict through the increasing supply of increasingly detailed information. Civilisations will get to know one another, not with the objective of waging war, but by searching for common ground and enjoying the beauty and richness of diversity. This leads to creativity and renovation, which in turn creates a better society.