King Charles III accepted an accord of reconciliation from the leaders of several major Jewish and Muslim groups in the UK on Wednesday.
The accord marked the first time such a wide breadth of Jewish and Muslim religious denominations had come to an agreement on tackling antisemitic and Islamophobic hatred and violence in the UK.
The accords outline four "principles of reconciliation": unity in diversity, sacred texts as a guide, commitment to no harm, and recognizing the impact of global crises to reaffirm a shared dedication to peace.
Present at the event were the leaders of six of the largest Muslim denominations and five of the largest Jewish denominations.
Major Jewish and Muslim denominations
The Jewish denominations represented were Orthodox, Spanish and Portuguese Sephardi, Masorti, Reform, and Liberal Judaism.
The Muslim denominations were the Barelvi, Deobandi, and Shafi movements within Sunni Islam and the Ismaili and Bohras branches of Shia Islam, as well as general Shia Islam.
The accord was led by Imam Sayed Razawi, who leads the Scottish branch of Ahlul Bayt Society (Shia), along with UK Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis.
There were 12 major spiritual leaders at the summit.
Within the Jewish movements, those who attended included Rabbi Josh Levy, head of the Movement for Reform Judaism; Rabbi Charley Baginsky, head of Liberal Judaism; Rabbi Jonathan Wittenberg, senior Masorti rabbi; Rabbi Joseph Dweck, senior Sephardi rabbi; and Rabbi Moshe Rubin, a leader in Scotland’s Orthodox Jewish community, along with Chief Rabbi Mirvis.
Within the Muslim movements, those who attended included Senior Imam Qari Asim of the Sunni Barlevi Movement, Imam Sheikh Muhammad Ismail of the Sunni Deobandi movement, Imam Dr. Sheikh Khalifa Ezzat, the Sunni Chief Imam and Head of Religious Affairs at London Central Mosque, Aliya Nasser, representing the Ismaili Aga Khan UK National Council, Kinana Jamaluddin Bhai Sahib of the Bohra-Ismailis, and Imam Razawi.
In the wake of the war
The summit took place in mid-January in secret at Drumlanrig Castle, the home of Richard Scott, 10th Duke of Buccleuch.
Buccleuch had extended the invitations to the faith leaders in an effort to help repair the relations between the two communities in the wake of the Israel-Hamas war.
Funding and the willingness to engage in interfaith projects had “dried up” after the start of the war, an unnamed source told The Times.
The Duke traveled with the faith leaders to London to present King Charles with the accords, now known as the Drumlanrig Reconciliation Accords.
The King expressed his joy at the occasion, saying, "I’m so glad to hear about this marvelous exercise."
King Charles, Defender of the Faith
King Charles has long had an interest in spirituality and interfaith dialogue, having had strong connections to the Greek Orthodox Church through his father, Prince Philip, even visiting Mount Athos in Greece, one of the centers of Greek Orthodoxy and spirituality.
Despite his strong belief in Christianity, he long sought to present himself as not only a defender of Christianity but of all faiths in the UK. In 1994, he suggested that he would change one of the titles of the British monarch from "Defender of the Faith" to "Defender of all Faiths." However, this did not come to pass upon his coronation.
Charles, through his position as King of Great Britain, is also supreme governor of the Church of England.
Cardinal Vincent Nichols also welcomed the accord and praised it for "developing friendships and close relationships between faith leaders."