In his address to the organizers and all participants of the Fez Festival, HRM King Mohamed VI had some very timely things to say about this World Heritage City, Islam and the place of Morocco in a fast-changing world.
Here is a summary of the speech given at the Royal Palace in Fez, 1st June, 2007. It was read again at the first of the Fez Encounters sessions on Saturday June 2nd; the original copy of which was then given to Mohamed Kabbaj and a second copy to the Wali.
First, the King commended the festival efforts to pursue a dialogue on coexistence between different cultures and civilizations and the bonds between the revealed religions and values we all have in common.
He went on to say he is not surprised that Fez is the location of a World Sacred Music Festival because, in his words, "...music has flourished only in places where man can forget about material things, embrace faith, and the Absolute in
order to experience all the gifts with which the Almighty has endowed him, particularly his spirituality. Furthermore, music is a most powerful form of spiritual expression; it is also the medium most likely to bring humans together."
He continued saying, "Islam is a faith based on reason and wisdom." He cited instances where the Holy Qu'ran praises the mind and encourages reflection.
There should be balance between the sacred and the modern because one cannot fully exist without the other. The sacred would wither and the modern would lack soul. A complement of these two concepts, sacred and modern, is what the festival aspires to with its message of hope, discernment and brotherhood.
Morocco is and always has been a cultural crossroads, a melting pot, and a place
of learning, reason and creativity. It is through Morocco's embrace of moderate Islam that there exists here a culture of reason and faith, matter and spirit, sacred and modern. This pursuit of knowledge developed simultaneously with spirituality and a quest for the sacred and through this balance has allowed Morocco to develop solid relations with the world around them.
The king continued by saying Morocco remains committed to fostering a complementarity between the sacred and the modern in order to ensure it remains a crossroads between East and West. Morocco is striving to become a model and democratic society, embrace modernity, adhere to globalization all the while retaining a human face and remaining committed to its spiritual values. The goal is to "bring about a Maghreb-Mediterranean region where peace and understanding
prevail."
In closing, he said today's frames of reference are threatened or being lost and many religious precepts and human principles are being either distorted or misrepresented by fanaticism, violence and terror, and the spread of false rumors about a clash of civilizations. The King calls on everyone concerned, especially international institutions, media outlets, intellectuals and artists, to do their part in combatting these perils to world peace, security and stability.
In closing, he said people must break with the old models of standardized, sweeping globalization and embrace cultural diversity and the right to differ.
People must commit to universal values and the teachings of the revealed religions; principles of equality, freedom, justice, peace, tolerance and democracy.
He thanked the festival organizers, guests and performers, and attendees by saying their gathering 'attests not only to the significance of the sacred and the modern in our lives, but also to your commitment to the afore-mentioned inspiring values and to their advancement in the world." He also thanked the inhabitants of Fez for making this city special in the world due to its characteristic mix of ancient and modern.
