Jews, Christians , Muslims and others - unite! Well, sort of... the devil

According to Archbishop Cranmer:

"It is announced from Lambeth Palace that the Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby was joined by Pope Francis and other Christian, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist and Jewish leaders in a joint declaration to bring an end to the curse of modern slavery. The ground-breaking Global Freedom Network, which was launched with the support of the Archbishop and Pope in March 2014, brought together global faith leaders in a commitment to eradicate modern slavery by 2020 – throughout the world and for all time. It is estimated that over 36 million people around the globe (and at least 13,000 in the UK) live under the yoke of slavery, most commonly coerced prostitution or forced labour."

"The Joint Declaration emphasises that modern slavery – in terms of human trafficking, forced labour and prostitution, organ trafficking, and any relationship that fails to respect the fundamental conviction that all people are equal and have the same freedom and dignity – is a crime against humanity, and must be recognised as such by everyone and by all nations."

All the following were signatories to the Declaration:

Pope Francis (pp Roman Catholicism)
Her Holiness Mata Amritanandamayi (pp Hinduism)
Zen Master Thich Nhat Hanh (Thay) (pp Buddhism, represented by Venerable Bhikkhuni Thich Nu Chan Khong)
The Most Ven. Datuk K Sri Dhammaratana, Chief High Priest of Malaysia (pp Buddhism)
Rabbi Dr. Abraham Skorka (pp Judaism)
Chief Rabbi David Rosen, KSG, CBE (pp Judaism)
His All-Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew (pp Orthodoxy, represented by His Eminence Metropolitan Emmanuel of France)
Mohamed Ahmed El-Tayeb, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar (pp Sunni Islam, represented by Dr. Abbas Abdalla Abbas Soliman, Undersecretary of State of Al Azhar Alsharif)
Grand Ayatollah Mohammad Taqi al-Modarresi (pp Shi’a Islam)
Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Basheer Hussain al Najafi (pp Twelver Shi’a Islam, represented by Sheikh Naziyah Razzaq Jaafar, Special advisor of Grand Ayatollah Sheikh Omar Abboud (pp Shi’a Islam)
Most Revd and Right Hon Justin Welby, Archbishop of Canterbury (pp Anglicanism)

'All this is good, very good', to quote Cranmer. Quoting older sources, "The Devil is in the detail".

So what is the detail here?

Apparently, there was a caveat, "of sorts".

Take a look at the declaration:

We, the undersigned, are gathered here today for a historic initiative to inspire spiritual and practical action by all global faiths and people of good will everywhere to eradicate modern slavery across the world by 2020 and for all time.

In the eyes of God*, each human being is a free person, whether girl, boy, woman or man, and is destined to exist for the good of all in equality and fraternity. Modern slavery, in terms of human trafficking, forced labour and prostitution, organ trafficking, and any relationship that fails to respect the fundamental conviction that all people are equal and have the same freedom and dignity, is a crime against humanity.

We pledge ourselves here today to do all in our power, within our faith communities and beyond, to work together for the freedom of all those who are enslaved and trafficked so that their future may be restored. Today we have the opportunity, awareness, wisdom, innovation and technology to achieve this human and moral imperative.

*The Grand Imam of Al Azhar uses the word “religions”.

Note the little asterisk - my highlighting.

This is his, 'Get out of Jail Free' card. You can read the "Archbishop's" justified fulminations and conclusions here.

So no real unity then?

What is also interesting is another detail, and according to an even older quote, "Le bon Dieu est dans le détail" (the good God is in the detail). Certainly, any Bible expositor, Jewish or Christian, knows the truth of this. The quote is attributed to someone who was unlikely to have experienced the moment of realisation or revelation that comes from a new insight into scripture.

This detail is also in the above declaration.

In the eyes of God, each human being is a free person, whether girl, boy, woman or man, and is destined to exist for the good of all in equality and fraternity.

This seems to me to be a reasonable summary of Judeo-Christian teaching. I doubt that you would find it anywhere else. 

It would seem that we have persuaded most of them to accept a Biblical perspective. This is what it means to be a light to the nations. They will accept your teaching but not accept you or your God.