Vatican, Muslims reach agreement on regular dialogue - March 6, 2008

The Vatican and Muslim leaders agreed yesterday to establish a regular official dialogue to improve often difficult relations between the two religions.

A joint statement said the first meeting of the The Catholic-Muslim Forum will take place between November 4 and 6 in Rome with 24 religious leaders and scholars from each side.

It said the themes of the first session would be "Love of God, Love of Neighbour", "Theological and Spiritual Foundation", and "Human Dignity and Mutual Respect".

Pope Benedict will address the group, the statement said.

The announcement was made at the end of a two-day meeting at the Vatican with five representatives of a group of more than 200 Muslims who had signed an unprecedented appeal to the Pope to begin a dialogue.

Catholic-Muslim relations nosedived in 2006 after Pope Benedict delivered a lecture in Regensburg, Germany, that was taken by Muslims to imply that Islam was violent and irrational.

Muslims around the world protested and the Pope sought to make amends when he visited Turkey's Blue Mosque and prayed towards Mecca with its Imam.

After the fallout from the Regensburg speech, 138 Muslim scholars and leaders wrote to the German-born Pontiff and other Christian leaders last year, saying "the very survival of the world itself" may depend on dialogue between the two faiths.

The signatories of the Muslim appeal for theological dialogue, called the "Common Word", has grown to nearly 225 since.

Although Pope Benedict repeatedly expressed regret for the reaction to his speech in Regensburg, he stopped short of a clear apology sought by Muslims.