Grand Ayatollah Naser Makarem-Shirazi has met with the head of the Association of Muslim Scholars and a renowned Sunni scholar in Lebanon, Shaykh Ahmad az-Zayn, in the holy city of Qom.
The two great scholars discussed the many commonalities among Muslims and stressed upon the importance of unity among Muslims and that all Muslims should respect other denominations.
“Although there are extremists who engage in actions meant to divide Muslims among the various denominations of Muslims, we must not give these individuals or groups any importance and we must be vigilant so that these [deviant groups] cannot lead Muslims astray,” Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi stated.
“We stress that blaspheming others’ religious personalities is not permissible and religious leaders of Islamic countries have been aware of this issue. Otherwise we will witness further bloodshed and terrible destruction among Islamic countries which no one of intellect would allow to occur,” he added.
Stating that there are many similarities between Shi’ites and Sunnis, Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi stated: “Your prestige is our prestige and your success is our success. All Muslims are the same and they should aid each other, and this aid should be for all Lebanese Muslims and the entire Islamic community.”
The revered Shi’ite source of emulation reminded the Sunni scholar that Muslims are indeed one during the Hajj pilgrimage, where all Muslims gather together to perform the Hajj rituals in the holy city of Makkah. “Hajj symbolizes the unity of Muslims,” he stated.
For his part, Shaykh Ahmad az-Zayn explained the formation of the Association of Muslim Scholars in Lebanon, stressing that this association is one of the bounties of the movement of Imam Khomeini in Lebanon.
He stated that the belief of Wilayat al-Faqih is demonstrated in the leadership of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution [Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei]. He also explained that Iran’s support of the Palestinian resistance and its dissemination of the culture of Islamic unity between Shi’ites and Sunnis is one of the most important pillars of the Association of Muslim Scholars.
He also commended Ayatollah Makarem-Shirazi for establishing the World Congress on Extremist and Takfiri Movements from the Viewpoint of Islamic Scholars, which was held this past November in Qom.
He said that the Association of Muslim Scholars consists of 250 Shi’ite and Sunni scholars and was founded 35 years ago with the authorization of Imam Khomeini.
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