While King Mohammed VI stressed the need of fighting against radicalism, through education, Pope Francis highlighted the importance of maintaining an interreligious dialogue to overcome differences and conflicts. On Saturday, March the 30th, and after receiving Pope Francis for the first time in the Kingdom, King Mohammed VI delivered a speech at the Esplanade of the Hassan Mosque in Rabat. In his speech, which was followed by the address of Pope Francis, the Moroccan sovereign stated that ignorance is one of the main pillars of radicalism. He stressed that the latter «whether it is motivated by religion or not - is due to failure to know one another, to ignorance of the other, and to ignorance pure and simple». To eliminate radicalism, the King referred to the act of «knowing one another». To him, it is the only thing that will «help us rise to the challenges of our tormented times». Moreover, King Mohammed VI insisted that tackling radicalism relies only on «education» and not «military and financial solutions». «My plea for education is an indictment of ignorance. It is binary conceptions and the fact of not knowing one another well enough that are threatening our civilizations; it is certainly not religion». King Mohammed VI Speaking to the crowds that gathered, Saturday, to attend the event, the King stated that religion must have a rightful place in «education», adding : «That is why I cannot speak to these young people without warning them against the phenomena of radicalization and of stepping into violence». An interreligious dialogue The sovereign stressed that religion should «no longer be an alibi for ignorant people, for ignorance or for intolerance», referring to the Mohammed VI Ulema Foundation. Meanwhile, Pope Francis highlighted in his speech the importance of maintaining an «interreligious dialogue» among the followers of both Islam and Christianism. Speaking to the crowds, the Pope said that he «would like to affirm once more our need for cooperation in giving new impetus to the building of a world of greater solidarity, marked by honest, courageous and indispensable efforts to promote a dialogue respectful of the richness and distinctiveness of each people and every individual». Pope Francis referred to the differences and lack of «reciprocal knowledge» that lead to conflicts and division, adding that «it is vital to foster the culture of dialogue and adhere to it unfailingly, to adopt mutual cooperation as our code of conduct and reciprocal understanding as our method and standard». On the other hand, Pope Francis insisted on the need of respecting one another differences. «God created human beings equal in rights, duties and dignity, and he calls them to live as brothers and sisters and to spread the values of goodness, love and peace», he concluded.
