World Muslims Urged to Ditch Difference, Move toward Unity
The international event, which is held both in-person and online, was inaugurated on Sunday morning with the recitation of some verses from the Holy Quran at Tehran's Summit Hall.
The opening ceremony was officiated by Iranian President Ebrahim Raeisi.
Among the speakers on the first day of the conference was Professor Khalis Aydmir, an official with Turkey’s Directorate of Religious Affairs (Diyanet).
He said Islamic unity is a divine plan and it is something that all Muslims should strive for.
He said it is Satan’s plan to foment discord and disunity among Muslims and they should all oppose it.
According to Aydmir, the Islamic unity conference will certainly have good achievements for Muslims as it helps them focus on their common grounds.
“We believe that Muslims should set aside all their differences and walk on the path of Islamic unity,” he stated.
“Islamic values are very important and we ought to be committed to them,” he added.
Sheikh Ravil Gaynutdin, chairman of the Russian Muftis’ Council, also addressed the opening session.
He said for all the diversities in cultures and stances, Muslims should act unanimously and move together.
Unity of hearts is the essence of Islamic Ummah, he said, stressing that all Islamic schools of thought should get together to move toward a common goal.
He also said that the Holy Quran invites people of all faiths to hold dialogue and boost unity.
Today, for all their differences, followers of various faiths should get united and help one another in good deeds and resist against evil.
The Russian Muslim cleric further referred to efforts by his country aimed at strengthening unity said Russia has worked to enhance peace and cooperation among all faiths over the past centuries.
He also pointed to the recent acts of Quran desecration in Europe and noted that Russian President Vladimir Putin has strongly condemned such acts of sacrilege against Islamic sanctities.
More than 200 Iranian and foreign intellectuals and religious figures from various Muslim countries are participating in the International Islamic Unity Conference, which is organized by the World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought. The event will conclude on October 3.
The online section of the conference started on Thursday, September 28.
The 17th day of Rabi al-Awwal, which falls on October 3 this year, is believed by Shia Muslims to mark the birth anniversary of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), while Sunni Muslims regard the 12th day of the month (September 28) as the birthday of the last prophet.
The interval between the two dates is celebrated every year as the Islamic Unity Week.
Late Founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran Imam Khomeini (RA) declared the occasion the Islamic Unity Week back in the 1980s.
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