MUSLIMS PLAN PEACE EMISSARIES TO END CONFLICTS
Abu Dhabi, 27 Rabi’ul Akhir 1436/17 February 2015 (MINA) – Amid increasing anti-Islam propaganda worldwide, a council of elite Muslim scholars met in Abu Dhabi, discussing methods of renovating Islamic education and developing a new strategy to send peace delegations to global hotspots “to stop the game of death”.
“The goal is to reach an agreement that Islam is innocent of the terrorism going on,” Dr Kaltham Al Muhairi, professor at Zayed University’s Institute of Islamic World Studies, said during the meeting of the Muslim Council of Elders, The National reported on Sunday, February 15, On Islam quoted by Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA) as reporting.
“Dialogue also aims to make other parties recognize the right of Muslims to portray the true image of Islam.”
The Muslim Council of Elders met in the Emirati capital to discuss ways to modernize the way Islam is taught in schools to fight misconceptions.
The meeting, held last Thursday, discussed methods to improve interfaith dialogues, including sending peace delegations to global hotspots “to stop the game of death”.
Abdullah bin Bayyah, president of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, said delegations would be sent to areas of conflict to correct misunderstandings of Shari`ah and explain that these “bloodbaths” benefited no one.
Dr Mohammed Shihab, former Indonesian minister of religious affairs, said that interfaith activities should go further than talk and bring together young people from all religions to work for the good of society.
He also suggested renovating curriculums to focus on Prophet Mohammed’s merciful teachings, “We have some old books that were written during the conflict between Christianity and Islam – we should not focus on that,” Dr Shihab said.
“This does not mean we will neglect it.”
Peace Emissaries
Bin Bayyah said the peace delegations would engage in dialogue from which everyone could benefit, “whether it is ISIL or other than ISIL”. They should consist of elite intellectuals who could “face the current of violence and random conflict”, he said.
“Searching for rights during a destructive war will not lead the ummah [community] to anything,” bin Bayyah said. “It will end with destruction and everyone will be defeated.
“Even if one imagines he is victorious, there is no victory if the ummah is burning.”
He added that it is the job of scholars, intellects, universities and good politicians to act as “firefighters in this deadly atmosphere”.
“Many of the disputes that we think of as internal are in fact due to foreign interference, so it requires two things: to talk to the doers on the land and those behind them,” Mr bin Bayyah said. (T/P011/P3)
Mi’raj Islamic News Agency (MINA)
