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A crime committed in the name of religion is the
greatest crime against religion.
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Initiatives in the Former Yugoslavia

Delegation to Belgrade in November 2000 From left: President Vojislav Kostunica, Rev. Dr. Fred Anderson of the Madison Avenue Presbyterian Church in New York, Rabbi Arthur Schneier. Behind Rabbi Schneier: Very Rev. Leonid Kishkovsky of the Orthodox Church in America.
Kosovo: Conference on Peace and Tolerance in March 1999 From left: Bishop Artemije Radosavljevic, Bishop of Raska & Prizren, Serbian Orthodox Church, Professor Qemal Morina, Vice Dean of Islamic Studies, Pristina, Rabbi Arthur Schneier, Federal Chancellor Victor Klima of Austria, Most Reverend Marko Sopi, Catholic Bishop of Kosovo.
The Inter-Religious Council of Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1998 From left: Sven Alkalaj, former Ambassador of Bosnia-Herzegovina to the US, Jacob Finci, President of the Jewish Community of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cardinal Vinko Puljic, Archbishop of Sarajevo, US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, Grand Mufti Mustafa Ceric, Reis al-Ulema, Islamic Community of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Archdeacon Radomir Rakic, representing Metropolitan Nikolaj Mdrja, Orthodox Church of Bosnia-Herzegovina and Rabbi Arthur Schneier.
  • Sent delegations of Catholic, Orthodox, Jewish, Muslim and Protestant leaders to hold meetings with government and religious leaders in Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo, appealing for peace and inter-ethnic tolerance.
  • Rabbi Schneier led a delegation of Foundation Trustees to Belgrade where they met with President Vojislav Kostunica, His Holiness Patriarch Pavle and leaders of the Islamic, Catholic, Protestant and Jewish communities. (November 2000)
  • Rabbi Schneier addressed the opening of the Millennium World Peace Summit at the U.N. calling on the 1,000 religious leaders assembled to, "marginalize the religious demagogues who ignite national, ethnic and religious passions with their preachings and practices." He also organized a session on conflict transformation in the Balkans, Russia and Central Asia. (August 2000)
  • Organized the historic Kosovo: Conference on Peace and Tolerance in Vienna which brought together for the first time the leadership of the Catholic, Islamic and Serbian Orthodox communities in Kosovo in the spirit of healing and reconciliation. (March 1999)
  • Hosted the Inter-Religious Council of Bosnia-Herzegovina in New York at the United Nations and in Washington where they met with Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and members of the House International Affairs Committee. The religious leaders signed a Declaration reiterating their call for fundamental human and religious rights for all persons in Bosnia and Herzegovina. (1998)
  • Initiated the Conflict Resolution Conference in Vienna, Austria as a follow up to the Peace and Tolerance Conference. An ACF delegation also held meetings with Presidents Izetbegovic, Milosevic and Tudjman. The Foundation, through the media, called for people of all faiths to pray for the success of the Balkan peace talks in Dayton, Ohio and has since encouraged healing and conciliation. (1995)
  • Cosponsored with the Ecumenical Patriarchate, the Peace and Tolerance Conference in Istanbul, Turkey, on Central Asia, Caucasus and the Balkans. (1994)
  • Convened an Appeal of Conscience Foundation Religious Summit in Switzerland that brought together, for the first time, the religious leaders of Bosnia, Croatia and Serbia. In the joint declaration known as the Berne Declaration, they called for an end to the conflict and stated that "a crime perpetrated in the name of religion is the greatest crime against religion." A day of worldwide prayer for peace in Bosnia was called at the United Nations and was observed on December 23, 1992.

Learn more about ACF's Global Reach

  • Initiatives in China
  • Initiatives in Romania
  • Initiatives in Russia
  • Initiatives in the Former Yugoslavia