Lourdes Maria Alvarez -Tolerance's End, The Rise of Fundamentalism in 12th and 13th Century Islam

Dr. Lourdes Alvarez, Director of Medieval and Byzantine studies at the Catholic University of America, spoke about the relationships between Muslims, Christians, and Jews in Spain during the 12th and 13th century. She began her lecture by providing examples of scholars and intellectuals during this time who deepened human knowledge, appreciated creation, and aimed to service the poor. She then went on to discuss the Almoravid and Almohad dynasties which both ruled in Spain during this time, and how this affected the scholars, intellectuals and the rest of society. Both the Almoravid and Almohad dynasties used Machiavellian tactics such as forced conversions, imprisonment, and even death for the Jews, Christians, and Muslims who did not share their exact beliefs in order to gain a stronger hold on their land. While these tactics increased the Muslim population and certainly strengthened the dynasties political position for a while, in the end both dynasties were overthrown. Dr. Alvarez pointed out Machiavellian tactics such as those used in these two Berber dynasties only create a false sense of security that will never lead to permanent stability. In the end she hopes that this history will remind us to return to tolerance in its deepest meaning and to live out the words of thinkers such as Rumi in today's world.

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