Somali preachers attend training at Al-Azhar on means to expose, refute extremist ideology

CAIRO - 19 March 2023: A total of 22 Somali imams and preachers attended a Sunday training course at the World Organization for Al-Azhar Graduates on “Contemporary Intellectual Currents.”

Dr. Habiballah Hassan, Professor of Creed and Philosophy at the College of Islamic and Arabic Studies, emphasized at the training that imams should be acquainted with all intellectual currents and the position of Islam on them.

Preachers meet people with diverse ideas and affiliations, so he must address people with an acknowledgement of their thought, culture, and backgrounds. Their discourse should stem from the need or the gap in the thinking of their audiences, Hassan said.

Contemporary currents related to Islam, however many, do not deviate from the type of currents that came from outside Islamic countries. There are also internal currents that are extensions of Islamic currents and sects that already have roots in Islamic history, such as the currents of extremism in religion in all its forms, he added.

A preacher has two duties, Dr. Hassan said. One is constructive, where he explains foundations and morals of Islam, as well as its tolerance and call to truth and peace.

The second duty is defensive, where a preacher monitors all corrupt beliefs that deviate a Muslim from the core of his religion. He then reveals to people the harms and consequences of such corruption on an individual and a nation as a whole.

Dr. Hassan called on the trainees to be ambassadors of Al-Azhar with its moderation and to confrton destructive ideas in a way that exposes their falsity to Muslim youth.