The former Director General of Cultural Services and Publications of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly stated, “Ayatollah Ramazani’s view in the Assembly is transformational and futuristic. General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly has 640 members. The 7th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly was held in Tehran last September with the presence of 400 members from 124 countries.”
ABWA Official Website – On Saturday, March 4, 2023, Shariah representatives of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution in different cities of Iraq met with Ayatollah Reza Ramazani, Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, at the conference hall of the Assembly in Qom.
Seminaries of Qom and Najaf, two wings in the Islamic world
In this meeting, while referring to the long history of Najaf seminary, Hojat al-Islam Sayed Muhammad Hussain Al-e Ayub, director of the Foreign Relations Office of the Center for Communication and International Affairs of the seminary, stated, “The first seminary of the Shiite world was established in Najaf, Iraq, and three years later we will celebrate the 1,000th anniversary of the establishment of this seminary by the late Shaykh Tusi.”
“Many attempts were made to marginalize the Najaf seminary, the last of which was carried out by the defunct Baathist government of Iraq. This government tried hard to destroy the Najaf seminary, but it was doomed to fail. With the efforts of ulama from different countries, this blessed seminary has been preserved,” he added.
“Today, the Iraqi seminary has 16,000 clergy of different nationalities, 10,000 of which are in Najaf, and 6,000 others are teaching and preaching in different parts of Iraq. A group of these clergy are related to the AhlulBayt (a.s.) Assembly of Iraq. These missionaries have fought against deviations and Islamophobia,” continued the director of the Foreign Relations Office of the Center for Communication and International Affairs of the seminary.
“Today, the seminaries of Qom and Najaf are like two wings in the Islamic world and present the AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings to the world,” he mentioned.
The emphasis of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution on the Jihad of Enlightenment
Further in this meeting, Hojat al-Islam Sayed Hussain Bakhati, one of the Iraqi ulama, while referring to the duties of the ulama, stated, “Shedding light on the truth and saving people from going astray is the duty of the ulama. The banner that has now been raised by ulama is the banner of knowledge and jihad.”
“The late Imam Khomeini (r.a.) was confident about his path and was insightful. Today, the Supreme Leader of the Revolution also emphasizes the Jihad of Enlightenment, and the ulama also must fulfill their duty in this regard,” he continued.
“We are under the attack of global arrogance and our enemies committed massive crimes. After the occupation of parts of Iraq by ISIL, Marjaiat issued a fatwa of Jihad al-Kaf’i, and the ulama were the pioneers in responding to this fatwa. In the fight against ISIL, Iran has supported Iraq extensively,” added the professor of the Iraq seminary.
Referring to General Soleimani’s presence in the battle against ISIS, Bakhati noted, “From the very first days of the battle against ISIS, General Soleimani came to Iraq. This martyr appeared on all fronts of the battle against ISIS in Iraq. These pages of history that who rushed to help us in difficult times cannot be forgotten.”
The transformational and futuristic approach of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly
Further in this meeting, Hojat al-Islam Sayed Muhammad Reza Al-e Ayub, the former Director General of Cultural Services and Publications of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, while referring to the new approach of the Assembly, stated, “Ayatollah Ramazani’s view in the Assembly is transformational and futuristic. General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly has 640 members. The 7th General Assembly of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly was held in Tehran last September with the presence of 400 members from 124 countries.”
“The AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly has compiled 1,213 titles of religious and scientific books. Translation of the book into 58 languages is another activity of the Assembly. The AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly has launched a WikiShia online encyclopedia in 27 languages, and daily visits to this encyclopedia exceed 500,000,” he continued.
“ABNA, the news agency of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly, covers the latest developments of the world’s Shiites in different languages. Also, Al-Thaqalayn satellite TV and AhlulBayt (a.s.) International University are affiliated with the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly,” said the former Director General of Cultural Services and Publications of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly.
“The Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly seeks to expand the activities of the Assembly to reach all humanity. The Department of Education and the Department of Virtual Space have been established in the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in recent years,” he noted.
At the end of this meeting, which was hosted by Ayatollah Reza Ramazani, Secretary General of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly in the conference hall of the Assembly in Qom, some of the Shariah representatives of the Supreme Leader of the Revolution in different cities of Iraq, expressed their opinions, some of which were as follows:
Expressing gratitude and appreciation for the positions of the Islamic Republic of Iran,
After the collapse of the Saddam regime, the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly was a pioneer in cultural activities in Iraq,
Iran has been targeted by the enemies because of presenting the AhlulBayt (a.s.) teachings,
After the fall of Saddam’s regime, the West tried to destroy Iraq,
Iraqi youth have been targeted by Westerners on social networks,
It is necessary to pay attention to the young generation in planning,
The AhlulBayt (a.s.) Assembly of Iraq should be strengthened to become like the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly,
It is necessary to strengthen Iraqi missionaries and improve their scientific level through continuous training courses,
It is necessary to hold cultural programs for Iraqi students studying in Iranian universities,
Emphasizing the role of the support of the AhlulBayt (a.s.) World Assembly of the cultural flow in Iraq,
The AhlulBayt (a.s.) Assembly of Iraq should play a more effective role,
More attention should be paid to the imams of Iraqi mosques, and efforts should be made to improve the level of their activity,
It is necessary to pay attention to the qualitative dimension, instead of the quantitative dimension, in preaching activities in Iraq. /345/