Al Azhar's Islamic Research Academy launches ‘Understand Correctly’ campaign

CAIRO – 13 September 2020: Under slogan “Understand correctly,” Egyptian Al Azhar's Islamic Research Academy has launched a campaign to rectify the misinterpreted concepts that relate with the norms and old culture rituals, according to a statement from the academy on Sunday.

The new initiative comes in light of Al-Azhar’s role in disseminating the public awareness of righteous concepts of Islam teachings, the statement added.

In a high-level conference hosted by Al-Azhar, Egypt’s top Islamic institution, in January 2020, President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi calls on religious institutions to attach great importance to the renewal of religious discourse.

President Sisi, since taking office in 2014, has called for developing religious discourse, especially that of Islam, and addressing religious misconceptions used by some extremist groups to justify their terrorist acts and deceive the youth.

The calls for renewing religious discourse, endorsed by the Ministry of Endowments (Awaqf Ministry), are believed to be part of the state’s war against terrorism.

At the ceremony of Muslim’s Laylat al-Qadr at the headquarters of the Ministry of Endowments in June, Sisi said that people’s behaviors could affect the image of their religion negatively or positively in other nations’ points of views.

“Strong religion could be weakened by its believers’ behaviors,” said Sisi, adding that Muslims should represent Islam in a good way through their practices.