Next Steps for The Abraham Accords: Bringing our Shared Past Common Future to the World

This new reality is a welcome blessing for the three Abrahamic faiths; Judaism, Christianity and Islam, and as such we were honored to attend a recent Summit which celebrated the Abraham Accords and served to strengthen the Abrahamic values we all share. This first ever Annual Abraham Accords Global Leadership Summit brought together representatives from 6 continents and nearly 40 countries, with many of the attending individuals being global leaders, diplomats, ambassadors, ministers, and clergy from multiple faiths.

Significantly, the central focus of the Summit was not only the celebration of the successes the historic Abraham Accords has brought to the region in just two years, but, most importantly, the promise to bring people together in an effort to explore innovative ways to progress the Accord values of tolerance, religion, traditional family, economic peace and prosperity in as yet unfathomed ways. The goal was to find ways to widen this new regional paradigm and explore novel approaches to replicate the peace and coexistence attained in the Middle East, in other parts of the world, including in Europe, the Americas and beyond.

At the Summit's opening, we heard from leaders of the recently united Abraham Accords countries; the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Israel as they shared their insights on the global impact of the Accords, provided an insider's perspective and discussed promotion of the values of the Accords including coexistence, diversity, religion and traditional family. But the discussion went far beyond these countries. It encompassed other countries from beyond the Middle East. World leaders, diplomats and entrepreneurs from Italy, Malawi, Slovenia, Finland, Poland, the UK, South Sudan and the Czech Republic, amongst others contributed their insights to the important discussions.

These leaders recognized that countries of the Abraham Accords have, as a result of the ensuing peace, reaped the even greater fruits of economic prosperity, which, in addition to stability, has promoted open markets and enabled us to build a vibrant and well-knit society that is both entrepreneurial and innovative. They delved into shared challenges, trends and threats faced by changing cultural norms in their countries and internationally. They raised the topics of the possibility of deeper and longer lasting cooperation between nations and the importance of developing favorable governance policies on a local level. Discussions broadened to encompass how the values of respect and coexistence, as well as heritage and religion, are being actively challenged globally. Approaches to retain our shared values, those that have allowed our communities to flourish throughout history, were considered.

It was truly meaningful for us, as representatives of the Abrahamic religions, to unite on stage in a conversation about our future. All three of us recognize the shared past which unites us and acknowledge that we must strive to build a common vision for our future. Critical to this collective future is our celebration of the traditional family unit and its core role in preserving the identity and culture of society. We all agreed during the conversation that our traditional family values are at the forefront of our Abrahamic heritage, and form the cornerstone of our societies, connecting us and preserving our identity and unique cultures. It is typically these traditional values that have sustained and allowed religions and cultures to impact the world in a constructive way, resulting in society's commitment to a strong sense of humanity.

At the close of the Summit we, alongside the attending global representatives, signed a pledge; the Abrahamic Values Pledge, to demonstrate our commitment to proactively continue to share the Abrahamic values with our local communities in the spheres of academia, governance, and community and of course within houses of religion. This ceremony was a clear sign of the promise to come. Over 70 global leaders signed the pledge to further educate their communities in the fundamental significance of the traditional Abrahamic values.

We envision that the connections created and the values shared will serve to impact local and global communities in significant ways in the coming year across communities, governments, media and religious venues. However, more than that, this historic first-of-its-kind Abraham Accords Global Leadership Summit in Rome is certain to be a catalyst for compelling and powerful change. It has created a solid foundation and charted a road map that will pave the way for the years and decades to come. This is just the beginning.

About the Authors

The authors unite in peace and cooperation from the three Abrahamic faiths of Judaism, Christianity and Islam:

Rabbi Dr. Elie Abadie is Senior Rabbi of the UAE, and leader of the Association of Gulf Jewish Communities
Imam Mohammad Tawhidi is an Islamic scholar and vice president of the Global Imams Council
Pastor Carlos Luna Lam is the Founder and Pastor of Casa De Dios of Guatemala

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