In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful
Praise and thanks are due to Allah Almighty. I send greetings and blessings on the Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his pure progeny and also to his precious and chosen companions.
At the outset, I would like to express my thanks and appreciate to the organizers of this Conference for providing me with the opportunity to participate in this Conference. This Conference is held with the aim of creating peace in the Islamic world and strengthening peaceful relations between different Islamic countries and schools of thought.
The topic of my short speech is "settlement of differences and its role in realization of Islamic unity". What has caused me to speak in this regard is that I observed with my own eyes that the big problem in the ranks of Muslims is not limited and enclosed only in political or economic and military dimensions, but this problem is in the thoughts and ideas that are emerged and propagated by the media. Therefore, it is necessary for Muslims as well as different media to resolve these disputes by avoiding policies that increase disputes. Muslims and the media should settle disputes in such a way that if they meet each other, they would never focus on points of disagreement. This is how Islamic unity could be achieved.
As you know, Allah Almighty has forbidden Muslims from cursing prominent figures of infidels, so that in this way, infidels, in return, do not insult and insult prominent figures and sanctities of Muslims.
Almighty Allah says in the Holy Quran:
قُلْ يَا أَهْلَ الْكِتَابِ تَعَالَوْا إِلَىٰ كَلِمَةٍ سَوَاءٍ بَيْنَنَا وَبَيْنَكُمْ أَلَّا نَعْبُدَ إِلَّا اللَّهَ وَلَا نُشْرِكَ بِهِ شَيْئًا
“Say, ‘O People of the Book! Come to a common word between us and you: that we will worship no one but Allah, that we will not ascribe any partner to Him, and that some of us will not take some others as lords besides Allah.’ But if they turn away, say, ‘Be witnesses that we have submitted [to Allah].” In this honorable verse, emphasis is put on the issue agreement of the People of the Book. This issue has many dimensions and angles; of which I would like to mention five of them; they are the issues that have all been observed objectively.
Firstly, attention to common issues among Muslims.
It is very important for the media to pay attention to important issues. The media should pay special attention to the common issues of Muslims. Islamic satellite channels as well as other media, both Shi’a and Sunni, should be concerned about the common issues of Muslims. For instance, they should address issues such as the existence of God and they should make programs to present answers to the doubts raised by the infidels. On the other hand, it is necessary for the media to deal with issues and cases such as "Divine sovereignty", "principles of religion", "great values such as prayers, fasting and worship"; because all of these issues are common among Muslims. Undoubtedly, addressing these issues has a huge impact. In the meantime, it is better to pay attention to the Hadiths narrated by the Infallible Imams. Explaining the Divine decrees with the Hadiths narrated by the Infallible Imams is a positive and fruitful action. For instance, one may refer to the statements of Imam Ali (peace be upon him) regarding a ruling of and command of the Almighty Allah. In this case, people will better know the Infallible Imams and the high values they are encouraging to. If we want to examine the Divine decrees from the perspective of history, then people may think that these issues find meaning only in the body of history. On the other hand, if we make references to the statements of the Infallible Imams, the level of people's attachment to the Imams will increase. For instance, if we talk about the prayers of the Infallible Imams (peace be upon them), including the special prayers of Imam Sajjad (a.s.), his worships, his prayers, etc., people will be more interested in them and even discuss them and talk about the life of Imam Sajjad (a.s.). However, unfortunately, we see that some people only refer to history and not the statements of the Infallible Imams (peace be upon them) in expressing the concepts and meanings of Islam.
Secondly; Correct use of terminologies.
The media should be careful in using terminologies. Here are some examples. The media can use the term "pure Mohammedan Islam" instead of terms such as "Shi’a and Sunni". The term "pure Mohammedan Islam" will be more effective and will call Muslims to Islamic unity more than any other term. At the same time, instead of the term "Ahl al-Bayt" (peace be upon them), the term "pure Muhammadan Islam" can be used, because the Ahl al-Bayt (peace be upon them) did not come to propagate a specific religion, but to propagate the religion of Islam. On the other hand, instead of the term " Itrat" one may use the term " ائمه هدی. This term is exactly opposite to pioneers and leaders of misguidance. Another example is "developing Velayah". Some people made a mistake in understanding this term and others made a mistake in using this term. It is better to use the term "keramat-Godly blessings" instead of this term. It should be explained in this way that the Almighty Allah has given "honors" to his righteous servants. This is what all Muslims agree upon.
Another term is " infallibility". For instance, instead of saying that Imam Sadiq (a.s.) was infallible, we may say that Imam Sadiq (a.s.) was a role model and exemplary character who represented Islam with all its noble values. We may also say that they were in charge of representing the Holy Qur'an and were actually the speaking Qur'an. These descriptions are just like the concept of the term "infallibility". The reason why we say to use those terms in such a way is that they correspond to the commonalities of Muslims; and the goal is to influence thoughts and not rely only on the appearance of the terminologies. When we can present the same unique thoughts and ideas to people, they will touch those common and identical thoughts and ideas in their lives.
Thirdly; Diversity in Sources.
We must diversify our sources and references. When we diversify our sources and references, then all sects and schools of thought will be seen in these sources. This is a very important issue. As a simple example, I must say that the Hadiths found in Kafi book are also found in Sahih Muslim and Sahih Bukhari. This means that we have both Shi’a and Sunni sources regarding a number of Hadiths. This issue has a great impact on Muslims. Another example is Bihar al-Anwar. There are Hadiths in Bihar al-Anwar that can be seen in Sunni sources. Therefore, the variety of sources and references is also very important.
Fourthly; Appropriate use of media.
The media should use expressions and terminologies that create unity and brotherhood among Muslims. The media should present the Islamic Ummah as the one united Ummah nation. For instance, when Ayatollah Sistani was asked about his views on our Sunni brothers and sisters, he replied: "They are from us and not [only] our brothers." Also, we see in the biography of the Late Imam Khomeini that he never used the titles and terms of Shi’a and Sunni, but only the words and concepts that encompassed all of Islam. He always spoke about the revival of Islam. This is while some people only emphasize the necessity of reviving their own school of thought. If each person is to consider only his own school of thought, then others also have the right to preach only for their own school of thought. In such a situation, the ground for conflict is created.
Based on all that has been said, we should use expressions and terminologies that include all of Islam. Here is another example. We can use the term "World Mission of Islam" instead of the term "Islamic Revolution". We can also use the term "awareness making in the ranks Muslims". In this context, we should carefully watch what the opponents and seditionists write in their books and articles so that we can prevent the creation of sedition in the ranks of Muslims by relying on our own policies and methods.
Fifthly; Responding to seditionists.
We should confront and dealt with the sedition before reaches its peak and escalates. Here, we can mention the sedition that was prepared in "London" by making a film. This film was an insulting movie to the Muslim Ummah that was supposed to be broadcast. However, major scholars and Ulemma took a stand against it by issuing statements and Fatwas. These statements and Fatwas led to the non-airing of the seditious film. For this reason, it is necessary that we Muslims have our monitoring tools so that we can use them to prevent sedition before it escalates. It is obvious that if sedition reaches its peak and escalates, it will be very difficult to deal with it and stop it. Currently, there are many media that deal with seditions. As an example, we should mention the "Al-Mayadeen" network, which counters many lies propagated by the satanic media such as the "Al-Jazeera" network. Al-Mayadeen, in turn, confronted the film that was insulting the Islamic Ummah; A film whose only purpose was to create a big sedition in the ranks of Muslims. However, this did not happen. "Al-Mayadeen" network confronted this sedition and stood against it and did not allow it to escalate.
In conclusion, I would like to request you, dear ones, to carefully to watch the actions and steps of the enemies when the plan to incite sedition in the ranks of Muslims, so that you can overcome the seditions before they occur or before they reach their peak.
Praise and thanks are due to the Almighty Allah, who is the Lord of the worlds.
I thank you for this hosting. And peace be upon you and Allah's mercy and blessings.
