AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly stated, “With the language of reason and Fitrah (human divine nature), the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school promotes peace and just treatment of tyrants. The language of reason and Fitrah is the most important way to understand the Quran.”
On the Tuesday evening, May 10, 2021, members of an academic and religious delegation from the United States, Canada and Austria met with Ayatollah Reza Ramazani, Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, in the meeting hall of the Assembly in Qom.
The need to reflect the realities of Iran
At the beginning of the meeting, while expressing satisfaction with the meeting with the delegation, on the need to reflect the realities of Iran Ayatollah Ramazani stated, “You see the facts with your own eyes, therefore you should be ambassadors to tell these facts to your nations.”
“One of the debates in the philosophy of history is whether the first principle is war or peace? We see that some put forward the philosophy of violence and say that in order to have power, one must overcome others. Those who are familiar with religion cannot attribute war and violence to religion. We claim that this is true in all kinds of religions,” he continued.
“All the prophets came from God, who has the attribute of mercy. The word mercy is mentioned 228 times in the Quran, and the frequency of this word is certainly not consistent with violence. The Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) was sent to be a mercy for all, and this issue is also mentioned in the Holy Quran. The Holy Prophet (p.b.u.h) said, ‘I was sent to spread mercy’. His management style was also based on mercy,” added the Secretary-General of the World Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.).
Referring to the distorted narratives of Islam by orientalists, Ayatollah Ramazani stated, “Because they could not properly analyze the life of the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) and his wars, some orientalists attributed the violence to him, claiming that ‘What spread Islam was the sword’. While this claim is a distorted narrative. In fact, the factor that caused the growth of Islam in human societies was the morality of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) and the teachings of Islam, a morality that is praised by God in the Quran.”
All the wars of the Prophet (p.b.u.h) were defensive
“Once in Germany, a documentary was broadcast by a philosopher in which he claimed, ‘The Prophet (p.b.u.h) ordered the massacre of the Jews’! This claim led me to re-read the Prophet’s wars, especially with the Jews. I realized that this claim was due to a lack of reflection on the history of Islam. All the wars of the Prophet Muhmmad (p.b.u.h) have been defensive wars against oppression and tyranny,” he continued.
“An important point I must say is that Islam is a defender of peace based on justice which promotes dignity in human society. I must say that there is positive peace and negative peace. Some say that in the face of tyranny peace should be made, and there should be no reaction to oppression. We call this peace a negative and passive peace,” added the Secretary-General of the Ahl al-Bayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
Referring to peace in the school of AhlulBayt (a.s.), Ayatollah Ramazani stated, “According to the school of AhlulBayt (a.s.), peace must be the basis for the realization of the true dignity of man, a peace that is based on dignity. On the subject of dignity in the Holy Quran, God is mentioned as the Most Dignified, and the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h) and the Holy Quran as who have constant dignity. Islam agrees with a peace that preserves human dignity. Islam and the school of AhlulBayt (a.s.) promote peace as just or dignity-oriented, which is the same as positive peace or active peace.”
“Imam Ali (a.s.), who is respected by Muslims and was martyred for justice, said in his will to his son, Imam Hassan (a.s.), ‘Stand by the oppressed, and stand against the oppressors’,” he continued.
The language of reason and nature is the most important way to understand the Quran
“The words peace, justice, and spirituality must be reconsidered and redefined, based on rational and intuitive perspective. With the language of reason and Fitrah (human divine nature), the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school promotes peace and just treatment of tyrants. The language of reason and Fitrah is the most important way to understand the Quran. The colloquial language of the Quran is Arabic, which is not a universal language. But what enlightens man is the language of reason and Fitrah,” added the Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
Referring to the comprehensiveness of the Holy Quran, Ayatollah Ramazani stated, “Years ago, a research project near Berlin was put forward by a research center to prove that the language of the Quran is not a universal, and that the Quran cannot be a book for English-speaking people. The organizers of the project did not know that the language of the Quran is an innate language and that this book is for all times. The Quran can be used by all human beings in all times. I answered these problems at a three-day conference in Berlin. They wanted to say that only the preaching section of the Quran can be used. I argued that all the verses of the Quran can be used by everyone in all times.”
Imam Ali (a.s.) did not neglect justice in the slightest
“The position of justice alongside peace is so important that Imam Ali (a.s.) did not neglect even a little of justice, and for this reason he was finally martyred. We believe that peace should never lead to the violation of human rights in human society. Human rights were introduced fourteen centuries ago by the Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h),” he continued.
“Based on ontological concepts, we respect human life and existence. In our theological thought, man is the mediator between the material world and the world of meaning. Therefore, in the bool Al-Shawahed al-Rububiyyah, Mulla Sadra considers the murder of human beings to be the highest sin after the hindering of the divine Ma’arefa (knowledge). On the basis of religious just peace, we oppose the possession of weapons of mass destruction by some, and the threat to humanity. We believe that the United Nations, as a defender of human rights, should not be content with mere expression of concern. Rather, it must stand against the oppressors,” added the Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
“We are interested in all the nations of the world,” he said.
Among the points raised by religious and academic figures from the United States, Canada, and Austria in the meeting with the Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly was expressing satisfaction with the visit to Iran and the meeting with the Secretary-General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, the importance of the association of peace with justice, the importance of human dignity, God’s universal mercy on human beings, the spread of misinformation about Iran and the Iranian nation by the US government and media, and the ignorance of the American people about the realities of Iran.
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