Religious, political leaders tasked on dialogue

Chairman of the Muslim Empowerment and Welfare Foundation (MEWEF), Malam Idris Usman, gave the advice Wednesday in Abuja at an interfaith dialogue programme of the Ufuk Dialogue Foundation (UDF) Noah’s Ark U-Talk Series titled ‘The Fundamentals of Dialogue in Islam’.“Continuous Dialogue is important as there has never been resolution of crisis or disagreement without one […]

Chairman of the Muslim Empowerment and Welfare Foundation (MEWEF), Malam Idris Usman, gave the advice Wednesday in Abuja at an interfaith dialogue programme of the Ufuk Dialogue Foundation (UDF) Noah’s Ark U-Talk Series titled ‘The Fundamentals of Dialogue in Islam’.
“Continuous Dialogue is important as there has never been resolution of crisis or disagreement without one form of dialogue or another. However, some people have used dialogue to exploit circumstances, including using it to subjugate a party in dispute. If man can dialogue with wild animals like lions, why would people find it difficult to dialogue with each other and live in peace and harmony. Two of the fundamentals that lead to crisis outside religion are politics and greed,” Usman said.
In her comment, Reverend Sister Agatha Chikelue, said those involved in dialogue should know that what is important is to avoid imposing one opinion on another during discussions.
She said: “We should see ourselves as human beings that are created by God and should find ways of promoting dialogue and leaving peacefully, not just talking about it.”
President of the foundation, Mr. Oguzhan Dirican, said women have significant roles to play in ensuring a peaceful society and cited the examples of some of the wives of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) including Khadijah and Safiyya, who played major roles in the prophethood of Muhammad.
He also said the foundation, among others, has two projects in secondary schools partnering the Institute of Peace and Conflict Resolution (IPCR) to orientate the younger generation to mutual understanding and peaceful co-existence.
Other Muslim and Christian participants were unanimous that the differences would always be there but must be understood and tolerated like was done during the prophets’ eras.