Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Multan (Agenzia Fides) - "Muslims and Christians work together for dialogue and peace in Pakistan. It is important to bring awareness among all believers of Islam concerning respect for other religions. Our Prophet Muhammad was a messenger of peace and our own greeting is shalom, a greeting of peace. We will continue to spread and work for dialogue, harmony and peace in our country": is what the imam of the mosque in Lahore, Syed Muhammad Abdul Khabir Azad, one of the great Muslim leaders in Pakistan, says in an interview with Fides.
Azad who has been leading the Badashi Mosque in Lahore for 16 years, the most important in the country, and was a friend of the Catholic minister killed, Shahbaz Bhatti. As leader of the "Interreligious Council of Pakistan for peace and harmony", he has organized today in Multan (in Punjab), a conference to emphasize the need for dialogue and peace in Pakistan. Over 500 leading scholars and religious from different schools of thought, representatives of world religions, diplomats, parliamentarians and members of civil society are at the meeting.
The Federal Minister for Harmony, Paul Bhatti, gave a speech at the conference by stressing: "It is important to bring together people of different faiths and give them the opportunity to sit down together to develop courses of interfaith dialogue, interfaith relations and promote religious harmony, in order to bring prosperity in the society of Pakistan".
Fr. Francis Nadeem, OFM Cap, a Franciscan involved in interreligious dialogue in Lahore, explains to Fides: "The Islamic-Christian dialogue in Pakistan in the form of a dialogue of life: we develop brotherly relations, we go to each others parties, we are close in painful events and in the experience of solidarity, as in the case regarding the aid to flood victims." Furthermore, the monk continues, "we organize seminars and conferences, trying to focus on common values such as love, tolerance, peace and also on issues of spirituality and mysticism." In this work, "the mass media plays a very important role and a strong impact on public opinion: to see the highest religious leaders side by side implies a message of friendship that reaches the base of believers." (PA) (Agenzia Fides 18/4/2012)
