In the contemporary world, the discourse on human rights tends to have universal and pervasive nature. At the same time, one can observe completely opposite tendencies towards the increasing relativization of this phenomenon. The essential foundation of the concept of human rights and human dignity is embedded in the Scriptures of many religions. Christianity has the most articulated social doctrine of all the world's religions directly linked to human rights issues - It became clearly noticeable, especially after Vatican II. Notably, the discussions about the universality of human rights are quite relevant for modern Islam and Muslim countries. Even though both religions are based on the concept of human dignity, they ultimately, each in their own exclusive way, defend fundamental values, which are steadily relativized in the modern world. Therefore, a similar and sometimes common value base of particular religions creates a platform for dialogue on universality and respect for human dignity and human rights. At the same time, the distinction between Christian and Islamic approaches gives us space to explore the experiences of other religions to diminish the religious tension in the modern world.
Roman Nazarenko, Program and Project Manager at the Institute of Religion and Society/ lecturer (UCU); Visiting professor at Kyiv-Mohyla Business School with (author's course of lectures on) - "The Arab World. The Key to Success."; National lecturer of the Ukrainian Academy of Leadership