'Muslim Council of Elders' launched in Abu Dhabi
Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, witnessed on Saturday night (July 19) the announcement of establishing the first independent international body that aims at promoting peace in Muslim societies under the name of "Muslim Council of Elders."
The move follows the recommendations of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, held here in March this year.
The announcement was made at a press conference on the eve of a meeting gathered a group of scholars and thinkers from Islamic world headed by Grand Imam Sheikh Dr Ahmed al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, and the Scholar Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah, Chairman of the Forum.
According to the founding statement, members of the council are expected to redouble their efforts to reunite the Islamic world and tackle extremist ideologies that are contrary to human values, and tolerant principles of Islam. They will work collectively to develop a roadmap with the aim to extinguish the fires that sweep across the region, and address the evils of sectarianism and violence plaguing the Muslim world over the decades.
The statement announced also the establishment of the Council as the first institutional entity that gathers the Elders of the Islamic nation, which was a result of the recommendations of the Forum for Promoting Peace in Muslim Societies, and a joint initiative of the Grand Imam Sheikh Dr Ahmed al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al-Azhar, and the Scholar Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah, Chairman of the Forum.
The founders of the council stressed - in the statement - on the need to comply with the provisions of Islamic teachings that calls for peace, rooting the concept of peace, and establishing the method of peace in fiqh (jurisprudence), values, concepts, rules and culture, making the path of peace contentedly a choice for the youth of the Islamic nation.
They also placed great emphasis on the impartiality of any subjective factors make the members of the council a party to any political, religious or ethnic conflict.
The aim of the council, which is based in Abu Dhabi, is to unify the efforts to reunite the Islamic nation and extinguishing fires that swept the region through facing extremist ideologies that are contrary to human values and principles of Islam.
Religion of Peace
Grand Imam Dr Ahmed Al-Tayeb, Sheikh of Al Azhar, said that Islam which created this Muslim nation, made its history, and became an integral part of its culture, is a religion of peace to the whole world, provides security and peace among its people, and for all mankind.
"Muslim nation's scholars and wise men must take their full responsibilities in this dangerous historic juncture which our nations are going through now and save their nations in this miserable battle between its people by deep thinking and careful planning with patience and perseverance, making extra effort to spread peace to achieve it and implanting it in our Islamic world through our moderate Islamic method that harmonises understanding of the text and the jurisprudence of reality away from fueling people by false images," his eminence added.
Scholar Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah said in this regard that the state of fragmentation and strife does not allow us to be a partner in the international decision-making, pointing out that the opportunities of development exist when peace exists, however, what wars offer is only death and destruction.
‘Islamic discourse is not Islam’
He also stressed the importance of the separation between Islamic discourse and Islam, he explained that the Islamic discourse is not Islam, it is the understanding of Islam.
He called all parties to renounce hate speeches and sectarianism which recently has taken extremist nature that increased the state of division and fragmentation in the nation.
The new body includes the elite of wise scholars, scientists, intellectuals and experts from the Islamic world.