In the opening ceremony of the Lights of Guidance exhibition, the Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly stated, “Holding such an exhibition can increase mutual acquaintance for the institutions active in international propagation of Islam quantitatively and qualitatively.”
ABWA Official Website – The opening ceremony of the exhibition of the achievements of institutions and organizations active in the international propagation of Islam, entitled “Lights of Guidance” was held on Saturday morning, December 31, 2022, in the conference hall of the Islamic Propagation Office of the Seminary.
In this ceremony, the Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly stated, “Holding such an exhibition can increase acquaintance with these institutions quantitatively and qualitatively, and also create understanding, interaction and synergy, and as a result will cause a transformation in the research and cultural fields related to AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings for the people and elites.”
“In the 7th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, the Supreme Leader of the Revolution mentioned that the Assembly should inform the elites of the world about the greatness and virtues of the AhlulBayt (a.s.),” Ayatollah Reza Ramazani added.
“The “Lights of Guidance” exhibition has coincided with the establishment anniversary of AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly,” he stated, “I express my gratitude to the late Iranian and non-Iranian figures who were members of the Supreme Council of the Assembly, such as Ayatollah Momen, Ayatollah Misbah, Ayatollah Mohseni and Ayatollah Taskhiri, as well as the former Secretaries General who diligently worked and did great jobs.”
Emphasizing the necessity of recognizing defects and damages in the activities of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in terms of content and structure, the Secretary General of the Assembly added, “A change system must be established in the Assembly, and to achieve it, it is necessary for thinkers and experts to help us by expressing suggestions and critiques. Therefore, we are ready to listen to scholarly and sympathetic critiques.”
“The Assembly has done many valuable works in the international arena. Publishing about 2000 book titles in more than 55 living languages is a valuable work. ABNA News Agency is one of the achievements of the Assembly and can be a rare and even unique news agency in the international arena. Also, WikiShia virtual encyclopedia promotes the AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings. On the other hand, the AhlulBayt (a.s.) International University and Thaqalayn TV are among great fruits of the Assembly,” he said about the performance of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
In another part of his speech, regarding the conditions and situation of Muslims in the present era, Ayatollah Ramazani said, “In terms of culture, politics and society conditions, today we are at a historical turning point. Today, the cultural attack of liberalism on the Islamic world and Islamic countries is intense. Enemies seek to create a platform for secularism in Islamic countries, the output of which is neglect and distance from Sharia. They are implementing the same scheme they did against Christianity in the Islamic world, and they are using all facilities and tools to achieve this goal. Today, more than ninety percent of the world’s media outlets is under the control of global arrogance. Therefore, today we are facing a news boycott and cultural ambush. They (the enemy) do not want human values and the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school to be introduced to today’s society.”
“Today we are facing a propaganda war,” he continued, “In different fields, the enemies show the facts upside down. They have the tools under their control and are attacking in some fields, and we are defending. It is necessary to attack the foundations of the enemy with the rich content of the of AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings and expose the weakness of enemy’s claims. The AhlulBayt (a.s.) culture offers a rich and humane content. Once, a western scholar expressed, “If we had Nahj al-Balagha, we would conquer the world.” When I was in Germany, I was in contact with one of the figures of the Sorbonne Catholic Institute in France. After six years of contact, he came to Hamburg and admitted that the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school can answer the questions of today’s human generation with its dynamic quality.”
“Today, spirituality, rationality and justice have developed so much that we are witnessing spontaneous movements in the world in this regard. During my recent visit to India, I observed that there are great possibilities for interfaith dialogue in this country, and this is thanks to the Islamic Revolution, and we should use it,” added the Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
“The western world has faced an intellectual crisis and cannot respond to human needs in the moral and spiritual spheres. The world today is looking for the ethical golden rules, the things we have many in the Quranic verses and hadiths, and we can introduce these moral rules to the world,” he said about the intellectual challenges of the West.
“We must get to know the needs of different environments in countries in different regions of Europe, America, Africa, etc., and provide content to introduce the of AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings in different formats,” emphasized the professor of higher levels of seminary.
“Institutions active in the international propagation of Islam must cooperate together. We must be together and support each other. We need to review and redefine strategies and goals. Also, we should avoid doing what other institutions are doing. We should look for demand-oriented research. We must propagate the responsibility-oriented spirituality, and introduce the wisdom which seeks Resurrection, and the different human needs in different spheres to the world society,” he continued.
“In this exhibition, institutions should identify each other’s strengths and weaknesses, recognize needs and avoid repetitive activities,” said the Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly about the “Lights of Guidance” exhibition.
Regarding the conditions of the world for propagating the AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings, he said, “Today is the most exceptional time to introduce the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school. There have never been conditions provided like today. Therefore, the seminaries should prepare themselves in different fields. It should be investigated that, for example, in the issue of children’s affairs, with what literature in America, Europe or Africa we can introduce the AhlulBayt (a.s.) school.”
“With detailed research,” Ayatollah Ramazani added, “the problems of education, culture, politics and different fields will be solved, and if our research is not up-to-date and not appropriate to the challenges, it will not respond the problems.” /345/
The Ahl al-Bayt World Assembly is an international non-governmental organization (INGO) that was established by a group of Shiite elites under the supervision of the great Islamic authority of the Shiites in 1990 to identify, organize, educate and support the followers of Ahl al-Bayt.