Religious harmony: Dousing the flames of sectarianism
By Shabbir Mir
Published: June 11, 2013
GILGIT: The ongoing Tablighi Ijtima in Gilgit-Baltistan (G-B) has provided an opportunity to bring Sunni and Shia sects closer in a manner the region has never witnessed before.
On Monday, Maulana Tariq Jamil delivered a sermon in the central Shia mosque, preaching peace, tolerance and respect for each other’s beliefs. Jamil is a well-known Deobandi preacher whose religious activities took root in Raiwind, Lahore.
He is one of the few hundred scholars who reached Gilgit from various parts of Pakistan to participate in the Ijtima being held in Gilgit from June 9 to 11. Ijtima is a Sunni religious congregation held over a couple of days, where often hundreds of thousands gather to hear sermons. The one in Gilgit was organised under the banner of the Tablighi Jamaat.
“Differences in beliefs don’t mean people should kill each other, Islam doesn’t allow this,” said Jamil in a speech delivered at the Central Imamia Mosque in Gilgit. He had been invited there by Shia clerics in a move clearly intended to reflect tolerance at some level.
http://tribune.com.pk/story/561499/religious-harmony-dousing-the-flames-of-sectarianism/
