Tapping the light of faith in diplomacy

A new strategic U.S. policy calls for better engaging religious leaders based on many examples of interfaith work that brought peace and met other needs.

The Monitor's View

Ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel keep warming up, a sign of momentous shifts underway in the Middle East. The latest example came Tuesday. The Israeli tourism minister arrived in Riyadh and was the first Israeli minister to lead a delegation to the kingdom. Next week, the Israeli communications minister is expected to make a similar trip to the heartland of Islam.

Some of the groundwork for these official visits was laid years ago. In 2018, Saudi Arabia welcomed a group of Jewish leaders and other religious figures to a forum on “common values among religious followers.” Then in 2019, the Muslim World League, based in Mecca, issued a charter calling for toleration by majority-Muslim countries of all religions. In 2020, the imam of the Great Mosque in Mecca said Islam requires Muslims to respect non-Muslims and treat them well. 

Peace is often preceded by people of different faiths who reach an accord along shared truths. Religious communities, states the United States Institute for Peace, “maintain unique forms of relational, spiritual, and moral capital that are not available through other forms of human organization.”

In many conflicts driven by sectarian strife – such as in Sri Lanka and the Central African Republic – clerics have banded together to promote calm and reconciliation. Such examples help explain why the U.S. Agency for International Development issued a strategic policy on Tuesday to engage religious workers as part of its development work.

“We must take religion into account,” said USAID Administrator Samantha Power. “In fact, when we fail to do so, we fail to tap into one of the world’s most powerful potential forces for change.” She said many faith leaders are “living out their religious conviction in a way that uplifts humanity and inspires us all.”

“At their best, religious traditions around the world remind us of the dignity of all people – dignity, a force that has spurred people to action,” she added.

The new policy builds on a decade of work under Republican and Democratic presidents to create partnerships with faith groups in foreign countries. In Bosnia-Herzegovina, for example, USAID supports an interreligious council to bring Christians and Muslims together.

Many governments now recognize the vital role of religion in peace building and meeting other needs, such as climate action. As Ms. Powers said in announcing USAID’s new effort, “When we partner with these changemakers, the results can be extraordinary.”

And by extraordinary, she might have added, that includes seeing Israeli officials visit Saudi Arabia for the first time.