It’s a very delighted days and a memorable occasion for Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University to witness nowadays the glory and honor, and to live up, once again, with its double responsibilities towards a new era of progress and advancement, and to pay more concrete contribution efforts in respect of its meaningful policies and missions, that basing on the texts of Glorious Quran and traditions of Sunnah, towards Muslims and their issues and interactions. It’s an outstanding occasion that embodies King Abdullah’s continued graces and initiatives and reaffirming his majesty debt’s over Imam University and his majesty vision over what it could be performing and accomplishing in the days to come. Recently, H.M. King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Custodian of the Two Holly Mosques, approved to the university directions and interests to alter the name of its center for contemporary Islamic studies and dialogue of civilizations to hold his majesty honourable name. Absolutely, this approve and kind movement will be the starting new point for the center towards universality and much more contributions efforts where the center can strongly and speedy realize and accomplish the objectives it was established for. These noble objectives and sympathetic goals had been formed to achieve the following points;
- Show the glory of Islam in its dealing with new issues and identify Islamic systems and their characteristics.
- Identify human rights issues in Islam and deal with youth issues and their problems.
- Deal and emphasize women issues and their rights in Islam.
- Clarify Islam’s position towards terrorism and clarify kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s position towards global temporary issues.
- Be attentive to new issues of the Islamic world.
- Identify contemporary civilizations and implement and promote the culture of dialogue among the Islamic civilization and other civilizations.

These abovementioned objectives adopted by the center has always been bodily depending on a number of sophisticated scientific methods and innovative methodologies combining the authenticity of the principles and  the contemporarily of the standards which are handling with the core of strategic planning and the foundations of institutional works. To that end, the center has largely set many methodologies which are stimulus the center ongoing blessed activities that are not only affect the meanwhile academic progress, but it will continue to play a key role regionally and internationally, Allah willing. Amongst these methodologies are;
- Organize international conferences and seminars that specialize in promoting the center’s interests.
- Translate and publish specialized books and studies.
- Develop a data base for Islamic advice on contemporary issues.
- Create a data base of special groups with people interested in research all over the world.
- Issue journals that promote the center’s activities.
- Develop and issue special scientific leaflets that are relevant to the interest fields of the center.
- Use the latest technologies and telecommunication resources in the exchange of information.
- Coordinate and cooperate with other centers and institutes in matters related to the center.

When shedding lights upon the center’s objectives and methodologies, then we‘re reflecting the most contemporary convinced methods and communicating tools that can lead to tolerant contemplation areas and help in making sure current world problems could idealistically be resolve and overwhelming. This such cultural and dialogue language is ones of the greatest achievements of King Abdullah and which considered, by many, as the most interfaith dialogue initiatives all around the world. It, additionally as it’s deeply significant prospective, considers as a fundamental basis for introducing Islam and understanding its universality to all the countries and people. It, also, reflects the noble and generous personality of our beloved leader King Abdullah, Allah help and support him, who have had a high sense of human and wisdom to an end, and a mind transcends all outweighing effects, and a high spirit of Islam to be choose as the most prominent figures all around the world.

The all humanity aspirations to avoid global bloody conflicts and violence has largely been depending on King Abdullah’s inherent fact policy and he trends to work collectively with others as well as his permanent stuck to the fundamentals and traditions of Islam. It is the king’s humanitarian motivations to overlap and share common principles and values with other humanitarian people that have demonstrated his majesty deepest insights and invitation to all leaders to broaden and recognize the dialogue among civilizations and the convergence between cultures in order to end circles of suspicion and discord and to seek common values and grounds basing on the universality of religious, ideals and lawful global social order, as he said when he speaking to folks of pilgrims that “Dear brothers; the divine religions and what was revealed to our prophet Ibrahim of the true righteous have all gathering upon key principles and together, as such,  they constituting the great concept of humanity and distinguishing the human being from other creatures not only by values of honesty, truthfulness, tolerance, solidarity and human dignity but rather by concerns on core single foundation in the community, that’s the family”.

Saudi Arabian king’s Abdullah interfaith initiative it is, indeed, a basis for addressing the current global situation in a proper application way that can reserve rights and build civilizations and establish a balanced international relations of security, stability and peace. It was through dialogue and benefiting from recent powerful modules, like the international conferences and scientific meeting sessions and cultural interactions and delegations exchange, that can paving the ways for international stability and progress. This’s exactly what Saudi Arabia is actually adopted since decades in its international relations and initiatives in addition to the other academical, scientific and research efforts in this regard. Each work and endeavour must be based on research and extrapolation and constructing results to consider it as institutionalized effort, for that dialogue could be serving as a perfect path for persuasion and raise the motivation for accept others. 

These royal initiatives are not just neither empty meaning words nor ornamentations, but they are sustained honesty steps that adopted by our beloved king who tails words with concrete actions and initiative with efforts and perseverance started in Makkah and ended by the UN General Assembly’s resolution to hold a worldwide high-level interfaith dialogue meeting session in order to let promises and aspirations of King Abdullah producing a meaningful and bold accomplishments. And as conflict, strife and violence has often continue in the whole entire world and in light of the growing of violent extremists who pose a grave threat to our security and stability, King’s Abdullah interfaith initiative and its great impacts and results has led us to truly say that, it’s one of the renovation works of his majesty’s records, ((Once every hundred years, Allah Almighty sends to this nation a man to renovate its religion)) an authentic hadith narrated by Sunan Abi Dawud.

We at Imam Muhammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, a higher education remarkable institute that often described as a beacon of Islamic and Sharia learning and enlightenment since decades and which have a proud tradition of progress and scientific experiences, are so much thrilled to have his majesty kind approval to launch his majesty name over the university center for contemporary Islamic studies and dialogue of civilizations. A movement that will squarely give us a strong motivation and endeavour to seek realizing its formulated objectives and tendencies, because it has numerous indications and milestones meaning involving with its words. Make no mistakes, this approval is a source of pride and a source of happiness for all members of Imam University, and it will usher a new era of advancement’s stages for the center.

The implications of such a distinction of his majesty vision over the academical studies and its impacts on the determination of dialogue initiatives and addressing the contemporary issues through the university-established units let us to say that, launching such tirelessly efforts on a scientific and efficient grounds will relentlessly bring a success to its ends and will generate confidence to both public and private persons that its legitimate frame is no longer part of Saudi Arabia’s approved origins and foundations. This conviction is rooted in the trust and reliability that places at the wised leadership whom are supported by Allah as protector of the two holly mosques and guarder the revelation and prophecy country.  

The noble approval of his majesty king Abdullah will, indeed, have greater impacts in strengthening the center’s role and goals, and we are optimally looking for the future achievements of this era. Although we are so proud of this progress, but we are still have had bone of responsibility   and weight of trust that might driving us to be up to expectations and aspirations, that’s why we will pay concrete attentions in the days ahead to provide every support and assistance to the center works and activities. We will spare no efforts to attract and recruit talent and professional staffers and remove barriers that standing in the strength and excellence ways of the center. King Abdullah center for contemporary Islamic studies and dialogue of civilizations have had, since it was established, carried the light of learning and achievements through the various range of activities and programs that performed by its staffers and officials. As a last mentioning point, King Abdullah has no limits of objectives and tendencies. A number of other additional aspects are also seizing the center’s attentions and care. Six key units are consisting of the center structural which all intending to help in makes the center’s objectives and goals be realizing and recognizing.

Islamic systems Unit: intends to carry out research on contemporary systems, carry out authentic researches and compare them to contemporary political, economy and social systems, organize international conferences and seminars that specialize in contemporary systems; Human Right Unit : intends to carry out research on the different existing systems of Human Rights, highlight the concept of Human Rights in Islam, review all agreements and laws related to Human Rights, organize international conferences and seminars that deal with issues of Human Rights and attend regional and international similar conferences, publish books on Human Rights and promote awareness about this issue in societies, coordinate with other centers and institutes specialized in Human Rights all over the world, prepare and promote research on Women’s Rights in Islam; Youth Affairs Unit: intends to carry out research and studies on youth issues and the problems they face, carry out research on the awareness and views of the youth about Islam and culture, carry out research on the origins of Islamic Brotherhood as understood by the youth, carry out research on the gifted youth; Antiterrorism Unit: intends to perform the following tasks: carry out research on the fight against terrorism, review all agreements and laws related to Antiterrorism activities, organize international conferences and seminars that deal with issues of the fight against terrorism and attend regional and international similar conferences, coordinate with other centers and institutes specialized in Antiterrorism all over the world, publish books that would raise awareness on terrorism in all its forms; Dialogue of Civilizations Unit: intends to carry out research on the dialogue among cultures, carry out research on the position of Islam towards the dialogue among cultures and religions, review all agreements and laws related to dialogue among cultures, organize international conferences and seminars that deal with issues related to dialogue among cultures and attend regional and international similar conferences, coordinate with other centers and institutes specialized in the issues of the dialogue among cultures and the coexistence of nations and peoples, publish books that would raise awareness on the importance of dialogue among cultures, provide and hold workshops on dialogue; Family Issues Unit: intends to multiculturalism in the Islamic world, illiteracy and technological gaps in the Muslim family, hijab (the Veil) for women, social development of Muslim children and nowadays challenges, identity crisis of Muslim children raised in non Muslim societies, culture of members of the Muslim family in a globalized world, rights of women and children according to Islamic laws (Shareah), Islamic solutions for family irreconcilable differences and family disintegration, the elderly and the ageing in Islamic societies, activation of social institution to help needs of families, needs of people with difficulties (handicapped) and their active participation in Islamic societies.

We are praying Allah Almighty to render a success and determination to the center entire programs and activities and to the active contribution in serving the nation’s issues that H.M. King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz, Custodian of the Two Holly Mosques, is looking forward to solving and handling them all. We, in conclusion, delivering our deepest gratitude and appreciation to his majesty king’s Abdullah for his precious and noble approval to let the university center holding his majesty’s name.