All to often we forget that Islamic societies lived and worked and were educated in secular buildings, and these buildings still reflected the art, the taste, the culture, the skill and the craftsmanship of those societies.

Canada is not among the largest international donors, but her programs are extremely well administered and reach the ordinary people whom they are intended to benefit. That is a rare accomplishment today.

We must acknowledge that the world is changing, but in so doing we must realize that there are still many lessons to be drawn from the past.

All cultures naturally influence each other to a greater or lesser degree; the strongest are those in which the dominant elements remain dominant and refuse to be overwhelmed by external forces.

All cultures naturally influence each other to a greater or lesser degree; the strongest are those in which the dominant elements remain dominant and refuse to be overwhelmed by external forces. They become stronger still when they retain the ability to select, to absorb that which invigorates and enriches and to reject that which is inimicable.

Our history is firmly rooted, our culture evolving and our faith strong and permanent; surely these have an impact on our modern lives and sensibilities.

our ability to communicate in several tongues sometimes impedes our expressing ourselves clearly in any one of them. If our command over several languages can erode our precision of expression, I wonder how much more quickly our eyes lose their ability to discern the integrity of a visual language.

It has always been my firm belief that the efficient management of a hospital, a school or a housing estate is as important as it is to a business enterprise. The objective of efficient management in this casse, however, is not to make money but to spend what is available in the most effective manner.

I have observed in the Western world a deeply changing pattern of human relations. The anchors of moral behaviour appear to have dragged to such depths that they no longer hold firm the ship of life. What was once wrong is now simply unconventional, and for the sake of individual freedom must be tolerated. What is tolerated soon becomes accepted. Contrarily, what was once right is now viewed as outdated, old-fashioned and is often the target of ridicule.

It is My profound conviction that Islamic Society in the years ahead will find that our traditional concept of time, a limitless mirror in which to reflect on the eternal, will become shrinking cage, an invisible trap from which fewer and fewer will escape.