Consolidate achievements of Saudi moderation: Makkah governor 

(MENAFN - Arab News) Makkah Gov. Prince Khaled Al-Faisal said it was the responsibility of all Saudi citizens to consolidate a moderate form of Islam in all walks of life and make it a weapon through which they could confront attempts to shift society toward the left or the right.

"Saudi Arabia was built on moderation since it was established by founder King Abdul Aziz," he said in a lecture on Tuesday at the Islamic University in Madinah.

Madinah Gov. Prince Abdul Aziz bin Majed, university rector Muhammad bin Ali Al-Okala, its staff and students and others attended the lecture. "Saudi Arabia has been unique in the Islamic arena in building its state on Islamic Shariah, which is based on the Holy Qur'an and Sunnah," he said.

Prince Khaled said Islam has been based on moderation. "Islam is against extremism even in worship," he said.

He cited a Hadith of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that warns Muslims against spending sleepless nights on prayer, fasting all the time without breaking their fast and abstaining from marriage.

He warned against people who wanted to copy the West's experiment of separating religion from politics. "Islam is both a religion and a pattern of life," he said.

Prince Khaled said Islam has not only organized the relationship between the Creator and the created but also relationships among individuals themselves and between individuals and their societies. "If we have such a good religion, why should we import ideologies from outside?" he asked.

"This country hosts the two holy mosques, it was the place where Islam was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in the language of its people and it is the country responsible for the service of pilgrims. This gives it uniqueness and specialty," he said.

Prince Khaled said the method of moderation provides an example of a successful Islamic state that is adhering to its great Islamic values and is open at the same time to contemporary worldly achievements that are not against its beliefs.

"It is the responsibility of the Kingdom's leadership and people to continue the successful example through Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah's project for political, economic, social, cultural, administrative and judicial reforms," he said. The governor stressed that Islam was against regression and underdevelopment. "Allah has created man to both worship Him and develop and upgrade life on Earth. We can therefore present this Islamic theory to the rest of the world to prove that Islam has nothing to do with backwardness," he said.

He said it was Islam that was the first to bring about the concept of globalism. "It was a good globalism in which everyone enjoyed prosperity and justice, not like the current one that carry some negatives," he said, adding that the values of freedom, equality and justice that the West is propagating were brought on by Islam more than 14 centuries ago.

Prince Khaled traced the history of moderation in Saudi Arabia since the time of Imam Muhammad bin Saud and Sheikh Muhammad bin Abdul Wahab and said since then the Kingdom has never deviated from this path.

He said through the strong adherence to its concept of moderation, the Kingdom was able to fight terrorism and extremism. "We have achieved much more than the countries that stayed away from religion," Prince Khaled said, underlining the strong bond between the Saudi leadership and the citizens.

The governor said moderation has always characterized Saudi Arabia's foreign policy. "We do not intervene in the affairs of others and do not allow anyone to meddle in our internal affairs. Our leaders have avoided wars and uncalculated risks," he said, adding that the Kingdom was and still is a strong advocate of tolerance and dialogue among religions.

"The King Abdullah Interfaith Center in Vienna will do this job properly," he pointed out.

He said the Kingdom stood alone against all heretic trends that invaded the Arab region during the second half of the last century. "We held strongly to our religion despite the provocations and cynicism from all over," he said.

The governor pointed out that through the application of Islamic Shariah rules in its judicial system the Kingdom was able to achieve justice for all.

He stressed that the Kingdom was also able to continue its sustainable development and spread knowledge through the opening of thousands of schools and universities, sending its young men and women to study abroad and establishing literary clubs and cultural centers.

"Our leaders have made women complete partners in the development of the country under Shariah rule. The Saudi women have become members of the Shoura Council and will vote in municipal elections," he said.