By Fatimah Muhammad
Religious understanding and meaningful interaction have emerged as key steps toward building trust among people of different faiths and promoting peaceful coexistence.
The call for greater understanding and engagement came up in interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the sidelines of a conference on inter-religious harmony in Abuja.
The event was organised by the Muslim World League (MWL) in partnership with Jama’atu Izalatil Bid’ah Wa Iqamatus Sunnah (JIBWIS) Nigeria.
Mr Isa Hussain, co-founder of Muslim Voice for Peace, an international Da’wah organisation based in Mecca and Washington, D.C., said the major lesson from the event was the need for people to work together for the greater good.
“The number one thing I learned from today is how we can work together for the greater good. We are all human beings and the best thing to do is to learn about other faiths,
“Many people do not know about Islam, Muslims, Christianity or other religions, and sometimes they are afraid of what they do not know.
“Get to know your neighbour and your friend.
“It is good to talk about peace and coexistence, but the most important thing is to practise what we have discussed in reality.”
He urged people of different faiths to visit one another’s places of worship to gain better understanding of each other.
“I suggest everyone should know the other person’s religion, go to the mosque, go to the church, bring the pastor to your mosque and bring the imam to your church.
“That way, we will all know about each other,” Hussain said.
Also speaking, Hajia Saudat Abdullahi, special guest at the ceremony, said cooperation and respect for humanity were necessary to achieve peace, irrespective of religious differences.
“We should cooperate, even in Islam, Allah said we should not separate, we should hold on to Allah and then hold on to the people around us.
“Whether you are Muslim, Christian or even pagan, humanity should have peace, we should have sympathy for human beings.
“It is very important that we should cooperate.”
Abdullahi said Nigerians have no other country and should, therefore, work together to resolve the challenges confronting the nation.
“We don’t have any other country than Nigeria. All this migration does not pay, we should sit down in our country, discuss and solve this together.
“So that we can have peace like in the 60s and 70s in Nigeria,” she said.
Alhaji Aminuddeen Abubakar, a participant from Kogi State, identified ignorance and religious rivalry as major causes of conflict among adherents of different faiths.
“What I think is the biggest problem bedevilling us as a nation and even as a continent is ignorance.
“Ignorance on the part of Muslims and ignorance on the part of Christians who see themselves as rivals.”
Abubakar said religious rivalry made people focus on the success of their own groups rather than seeking peace.
“When you see yourself as a rival, you only want to triumph for your own group.
“If Muslims really study their religion and act according to the teachings of Islam, and Christians also study their religion very well and act upon them, there will be peace.
“Because no religion practises or preaches violence,” he said.
Maryam Mohammed, Amira of JIBWIS Nasau Sunnah, FCT, said peace is essential for national progress, she urged Muslims and Christians to work together.
“This event is very important to all the people because without peace, nothing can be done well.
“Even students cannot learn properly when there is crisis in their land, everyone should work together to restore peace,”
Mohammed urged Nigerians to promote peaceful relations among people of different faiths, noting that religions preached peace.
“It is compulsory to urge Nigeria to be peaceful together, both Muslims and Christians, because all religions call for peace.
“Especially in the religion of Islam, Allah said that reconciliation is the best, So every Muslim must obey the command of Allah to live peacefully and stay peacefully with their fellow brothers and sisters,” she said.(NAN)(www.nannews.ng)
Edited by Ismail Abdulaziz