Former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami hosted an international religious conference titled Religion in the Modern World in Tehran (October 13-14).

Khatami invited several renowned political figures, including Bondevik, former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, former presidents Mary Robinson of Ireland and Jorge Sampaio of Portugal as well as Italian ex-premier Romano Prodi.

The event was organized by the Dialogue Among Civilizations’ Centre, an Iranian non-governmental organization headed by Khatami; the Club of Madrid, an independent organization promoting democracy; and the Oslo Center for Peace and Human Rights, headed by former Norwegian premier Kjell Magne Bondevik.

Khatami invited several renowned political figures, including Bondevik, former UN secretary general Kofi Annan, former presidents Mary Robinson of Ireland and Jorge Sampaio of Portugal as well as Italian ex-premier Romano Prodi.

“What is now being exposed as religion (Islam) is not what religion is truly about,” Khatami said in his opening speech.

The former reformist president, an advocate of global religious understanding warned against isolating Islam as a religion of violence.

Annan said the current global problem is not the Bible or the Koran, but how certain circles violently misuse them for their political aims.

Bondevik praised the conference for trying to bring various religions and cultures closer together.

Khatami said on the sideline of the conference that the Center for Dialogue among Civilizations has plans for various questions such as Islam-Christianity dialogue; Islam-West dialogue and also outstanding disputes which can be resolved through dialogue.

If we concentrate on the common points various religions and cultures share we can hope to get some positive results and leave an impact on the public opinion.

He said the axis of dialogues such as the international Conference on Religion in the Modern World is not politicians but benevolent and cultural figures who believe they are capable of taking some positive steps. The important thing about this forum is the presence of influential international personalities alongside scholars and thinkers, he noted.

We are all passengers of the same boat and must do every effort to save this boat.

“If we concentrate on the common points various religions and cultures share we can hope to get some positive results and leave an impact on the public opinion. In fact, those who advocate war and violence in today’s world, particularly in view of the negative atmosphere created against Islam and triggered by politicians, or those who merely underline the imperialist aspect of the West or attribute the US policies to the entire Western community, are responsible for misunderstandings that could become problematic.

“We are all passengers of the same boat and must do every effort to save this boat. I hope the dialogues and exchange of views at the international Conference on Religion in the Modern World would be effective in this line. If we fail to influence the decisions of governments or important international organizations the topics at such forums would be more conceptual, however, we can seek some solutions and reach some conclusions as far as social life, education systems, publicity and even influential organizations such as the United Nations, UNESCO and OIC are concerned and find some execution guarantees for them.