The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rev Rowan Williams, is planning to make a great leap forward for the UK in international Muslim-Christian dialogue to ease the relationship between the two religions. This coming Sept 11, Rev Williams will preach at the mosque of the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, the Muslim world’s most important learning center.

This year will mark the third anniversary of the Sept 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Rev Williams is expected to give a message of reconciliation, addressing the common ground between Christianity and Islam with their shared inheritance as “children of Abraham”.

Reported by the Times newspaper, the Muslim leaders have also acknowledged the significance of this meeting for the relationship between these two faith groups.

Zaki Badawi, founder of the Muslim College in London said, “It is a very significant moment in the history of our two faiths and especially coming from a man of his stature and learning. This will cement the relationship between Christianity and Islam because he will point out those aspects which unite the two religions. The Muslims throughout the world feel beleaguered and a comforting word from Archbishop Williams will assure our people they are not alone.”

As a leader of some 77 million Anglicans worldwide, Rev Williams is dedicated in making peace with other faith groups, especially Muslims. His actions are not only confined locally in the UK, but also beyond the national borders to international levels.

The 'interfaith relationship' mission is making good progress in the UK, as the establishment of a formal structure for Christian-Muslim dialogue at a national level was demanded by Christians two weeks ago. Some commented that it symbolised “the co-operation between Muslims and Christians has already reached a certain mature point.”

Prime Minister Tony Blair realised very early on about the importance of setting up good interfaith relationships in a religious context, but not so in a political context since the break out of Sept 11. Therefore, he entrusted the Archbishop to lead the project called 'Building Bridges' three years ago for this purpose. Until now, Archbishop Rowan has led two major meetings between Christian and Muslim scholars for this project. This coming speech in September is expected to mark a new dimension of the UK’s interfaith work.