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Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC and Dr Mohammed Shomali, head of the Shia Muslim seminary in the United Kingdom. ©Xanthi Morfi/WCC

Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the WCC and Dr Mohammed Shomali, head of the Shia Muslim seminary in the United Kingdom. ©Xanthi Morfi/WCC

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Marking the end of Ramadan, or Eid al Fitr, Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit, general secretary of the World Council of Churches (WCC) offered greetings to the worldwide Muslim community.

More than one billion Muslims around the world celebrated Eid al-Fitr on 26 June as the month-long Ramadan fast ended.

In his message, the WCC general secretary highlighted unity, justice and peace.

Tveit commented, “Within the unity given to us through our common humanity, we can, indeed must, also celebrate the different aspects of our human diversity, respecting the dignity and the rights of the other. I am aware that in the Holy Qur’an there is an important affirmation that God created human beings in different ‘nations and tribes’ and that this diversity is also seen in positive terms.”

The WCC will continue to challenge a spirit of xenophobia that seems to be growing, Tveit added, and he also emphasized the importance of young people in carving a new path of justice and peace.

“We all know the importance of resourcing our young people, Christian and Muslim, and followers of other religions as well, to become visionaries for peace,” he said.

 

Greetings to the worldwide Muslim community from the general secretary of the WCC

WCC programme for inter-religious dialogue and cooperation