The same proposal has been ignored in Britain - by, I may add, a national educational ministry of virtually unparalleled addiction to interference and incompetence - but in the past two years I and my colleagues have twice been invited to the Innovations in Education conferences of the Qatar Foundation, and I continue to co-direct a Task Force on democratic and mathematics education for the Foundation.

I am also the Foreign Correspondent of www.EdNews.org, America's largest on-line education journal, consulted by 1.7 million unique readers every month. My chief editor, Mr J. Kilpatrick, has recently sent me an approving note concerning the recent article by Dr Batarfi entitled: 'Why Arabs lost past glories'.

I sympathise very much with Dr Bartifi's analysis.

But I could also point out that very many young people in Western nations are sliding down much the same slope of increasing educational failure, social and historical ignorance and civil alienation.

Recent surveys in Britain show a nearly total loss of confidence in the inspiration that our religions once provided for freedom of speech and conscience, of rational inquiry - together with humility towards the diversity and miracles of creation; and that these qualities, all of them vital to a healthy religion and democracy, are being replaced by spiritually deadening intellectual arrogance; by equally uninspiring religious dogmatism; by the cult of political correctness and the stifling of free speech and independent thought. Meanwhile our public education system - presided over by the calamitous national ministry described above - is now failing so irrevocably that it is estimated that up to a fifth of young Britons will spend their future lives depending on social security, and in many cases these unfortunate young people will pass on their situation to their own children.

I believe this is becoming true because there is such a total dislocation between secular and spiritual thinking that both have lost their natural impetus of inquiry. When the minds of young children are only used to record, remember, and repeat the instructions of their elders, the vital spark of both their secular and spiritual lives is lost. They forget that it cannot be given to them honestly to discover God. It is up to them to learn to cleanse their minds and hearts to discover God themselves.

I have recently sent an invitation to a number of distinguished scholars calling attention to a short book - '473959', recently published by Trafford.com -about my experience: first as a soldier, then as a teacher; and asking them to take part in an international electronic colloquium to debate together a proposal with the following opening paragraph:

"What more joyful gift of peace could be offered to the world than to show that all the major religions, democracy and science, may have their origin in one singular, exceptionally intense and powerful human inspiration, and its various interpretations: that is of the evolution of a kind of spiritual DNA?"

If you believe, as I do, that the West can no more regain its confidence in the guidance of God without accepting the partnership of the East, and that neither can do so whilst science is seen as the enemy of humility, and not its guide, perhaps you will consider publishing the whole text - it is attached here as 'Scholars' - for your readers to take part as well?

I remain, yours sincerely, 

Colin Hannaford, Director.