Yesterday, Tuesday, His Eminence, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar As-Sharif, Prof. Ahmad At-Tayyeb received an official invitation from Mr. Rustam Nur Ali Minnikhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan, to visit the country and participate in the events of the conference organized by the Strategic Vision Group “Russia-The Islamic World” under the title, “Russia - The Islamic world: Traditional, Spiritual and Ethical Values as the basis for Interfaith Cooperation,” on May 19, 2023 AC, in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan.
The invitation was handed to the Grand Imam at Al-Azhar Headquarters, by Mr. Farit Mukhametshin, Deputy Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Foreign Affairs, who briefed the Grand Imam on the details of the conference that will discuss opportunities for new cooperation between the Russian Federation and Muslim countries, besides a number of international issues of common interest. The conference will also witness the participation of senior government officials, public figures, clerics, diplomats, scientists and businessmen from Russia and Muslim countries.
The official invitation contained the following lines addressed to the Grand Imam by President Minnikhanov:
I am sure that your participation will have the greatest impact in enriching dialogue and advancing the initiatives of the Strategic Vision Group “Russia-The Islamic World”. This will deepen cooperation between Russia and the Muslim world countries in various fields; spiritual, moral, humanitarian, etc. Hence, it will promote peace and harmony between religions and between Russia and the Muslim world countries. We thus look forward to your kind acceptance of this invitation and participation in the conference.
The Gran Imam welcomed Mr. Mukhametshin to Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif, stressing that, since its foundation, it has adopted a clear agenda of promoting peace and protecting the vulnerable. He noted that it also seeks to establish the values of fraternity, promote the culture of dialogue and sustain wisdom, away from politics. This, added the Grand Imam, springs from its role in promoting peace locally and globally, and therefore it has kept away from impartial political ideologies. Such is the secret of its survival and of its being trusted by Muslims and non-Muslims until today.
The Grand Imam affirmed that Al-Azhar undertakes the tasks of protecting youth and combating societal diseases, such as homosexuality and destructive familial orientations. He pointed out that some Western trends attempt to impose these orientations on eastern and Muslim societies under the false plea of rights and freedoms. He thus stressed that whoever understands the nature of eastern and Muslim peoples and recognizes the extent of their adherence to their religion and set of values and morals will realize the impossibility of passing these orientations to our societies. He then indicated that when religion was excluded from the set of priorities in contemporary civilizations, innocent people lost their lives, corruption spread east and west, and the world reaped nothing but more selfishness, fanaticism and hatred, besides the growth of the arms trade economy. Such economy was of greater importance than the economics of education and the fight against ignorance, poverty and destitution.
The Grand Imam then expressed his appreciation of the Western countries that still confront the obsession with immoral global trends, stressing that preservation of the religious and moral systems is a religious, human and social duty, and that Al-Azhar will not hesitate to carry out this duty. Likewise, he noted that Al-Azhar is humanist in its perspective and globalist in its call for peace and human fraternity.
For his part, Mr. Mukhametshin expressed his pleasure to meet with the Grand Imam and his appreciation for his great efforts to promote world peace and the values of human fraternity and coexistence. He added that the Human Fraternity Document cosigned by the Grand Imam and Pope Francis is a purely human constitution that underpins the good of all. He then highlighted his country's intention to strengthen its relations with Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif and to benefit from its great expertise in the fields of teaching Islamic disciplines and training imams.
Moreover, Mr. Mukhametshin expressed his country's appreciation of the role of Al-Azhar in providing it with cadres of scholars, professors, preachers and teachers, and for Al-Azhar’s hosting of students from the Russian Federation to study in its prestigious institutes and university. He noted that those students return to their country equipped with enlightened thought that contributes to the advancement of their country, sustains its stability and peace, and establishes a culture of dialogue and religious tolerance. For him, this serves the stability of countries and their benefit from religious and cultural diversity. Finally, he stressed that Muslims in Russia enjoy full integration that Russia is keen to establish partnerships with the Muslim world countries towards preserving moral ideals and cultural heritage for the different peoples.
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