RIYADH, 14 December 2005 — Kingdom Holding Company Chairman Prince Alwaleed ibn Talal announced yesterday his donation of $20 million to Georgetown University to support and expand its Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding (CMCU).
The Center, part of the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service at Georgetown, is an international leader in inter-religious scholarship and research, in particular Islamic studies and Muslim-Christian relations. The center will be renamed The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.
This endowed fund is the second-largest single gift in Georgetown University history. “I am pleased to support the Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding. It is vital for the monotheistic religions to reach a common ground of understanding and gain knowledge about what unites our civilizations,” said Prince Alwaleed. “We are determined to build a bridge between Islam and Christianity for tolerance that transcends cultural and geographical boundaries.” “We are deeply honored by Prince Alwaleed’s generosity,” said Georgetown University President John J. DeGioia. “This gift will deepen Georgetown’s ability to advance education in the fields of Islamic civilization and Muslim-Christian understanding and strengthen its presence as a world leader in facilitating cross-cultural and inter-religious dialogue. At this time of world conflict, Georgetown is committed to build upon our role as a Catholic Jesuit institution in fostering greater understanding among religions around the world.” John L. Esposito, founding director of the center, said the donation would enable the institution to significantly expand its programs in these critical times, and to influence and have an impact both here and abroad.
The CMCU was founded in 1993 through an agreement between the Fondation pour L’Entente entre Chretiens et Musulmans, Geneva and Georgetown University to build a stronger bridge of understanding between the Muslim world and the West, as well as between Islam and Christianity. The center’s mission is to improve relations between the Muslim world and the West and enhance understanding of Muslims in the West. The geographic scope and coverage of the center includes the breadth of the Muslim world, from North Africa to Southeast Asia, as well as Europe and America.
The center plays a pivotal role in working to erase stereotypes and fears that lead to ominous forecasts of Islam as the next global threat, or of a clash of civilizations between the Muslim world and the West. The center and its faculty have long-established reputations in building bridges of understanding among political leaders, religious leaders, academics, students and members of the media.
The CMCU remains the only academic institution in the United States dedicated to exploring the full spectrum of 14 centuries of political, cultural, historical and theological interactions between Christians and Muslims. The CMCU faculty — among the foremost international scholars of Islam and the Muslim world — work on issues including the compatibility of Islam and modern life, Civilizational dialogue, the status of women in Islam, Islam and modernization, and Judeo-Christian-Islamic traditions.
