International conference on interfaith dialogue kicks off in Cairo

CAIRO – 13 March 2021: The international conference on interfaith dialogue, which is held by the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, kicked off in Cairo on Saturday, with the participation of more than 35 countries.

 

The two-day conference, which comes under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi, would discuss more than 30 research papers and aims to consolidate the dialogue between cultures and religions.

 

The conference agenda of the activities focus on the concept of dialogue and its objectives and the effect of constructive dialogue on combating terrorism and human peacemaking.

 

In his speech, Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed El Tayeb said Islam is not a separate belief from other divine religions. “Islam has established peace as a principle for treatment between Muslims and non-Muslims,” he was quoted as saying by the state-owned news agency MENA.

 

Awqaf Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa underlined the importance of good-neighbor policy and dialogue among countries.

 

Deputy Sheikh of Al Azhar Mohamed el-Dawini has stressed Al Azhar is rejecting the theory of clash of civilizations and calls for establishing a genuine peace among people.

 

Al Azhar is confronting attempts to exploit religion as a tool to sow the seeds of sedition among people of one homeland, said Dawini during the 31st International Conference of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, which kicked off on Saturday, under the theme "Interfaith and Intercultural Dialogue."

 

Celebrating the International Day of Human Fraternity on February 4, 2021, President Sisi called upon the world to spread the culture of peace and to uphold the values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence.

 

“The world today is celebrating an important human value that we need more than ever before. It is the value of human fraternity... This momentous occasion reminds all of us of the importance of dialogue to understand and accept the other and the importance of strengthening cooperation to reject fanaticism, confront hate speech, and spread the values of tolerance, justice and equality in order to achieve peace and stability,” he tweeted on Thursday.

 

MENA contributed to this story