..As Kaduna Pastor meet Muslim counterparts
By Gabriel Udeh, Kaduna
As the world celebrates the United Nations lnternational Friendship day, the General Overseer of Christ Evangelical and Life Interventions Ministry, Pastor Yohanna Buru has led a delegation of some muslim and Christian clerics during the week with the sole aim of interacting and dialoging on various ways of promoting peace and unity.
This was contained in a statement issued during the 2021 UN int’l friendship day celebration with a theme “Sharing the human spirit through good friendship”.
Pastor Buru also noted that Covid 19 pandemic and high cost of foodstuff in the country coupled with kidnapping and banditry have affected peace stability in the country.
According to him, there is need to strengthening good relationship between Christians and muslims scholars in the state so as to teach their followers the importance of tolerance, forgiveness and accommodating each other in order to move the country forward.
During the week the cleric and his team met with many Christians and muslims scholars including the followers of traditional religion with the aims of strengthening good relationship to also mark the UN international friendship day.
The Christian cleric said “Our world faces many challenges, crises and forces of division such as poverty, violence and human rights abuses among many others that undermine peace, security, development and social harmony among the world’s people.
“Covid 19 pandemic and high cost of price of foodstuff in the country couple with kidnapping and banditry activities has affected peace stability in the country, hence the need to joined hand toward promoting peace in the country”, they stated.While stressing that to confront those crises and challenges, their root causes must be addressed by promoting and defending a shared spirit of human solidarity that takes many forms — the simplest of which is friendship.Buru note that the aim of the international friendship day is to promote Good relationship with all mankind world-wide irrespective of his religion, ethnicity, tribe, culture, race, color, hight, nation among others.He said, through friendship by accumulating bonds of camaraderie and developing strong ties of trust — “we can contribute to the fundamental shifts that are urgently needed to achieve lasting stability, weave a safety net that will protect us all, and generate passion for a better world where all are united for the greater good.
He added that every year, “the church use to share praying matts and plastic kettles to many mosque in the states, as well as some muslims also use to send some materials to the church in order to strrenthen Christians-muslims relationship in the state.
He also noted that such a gesture has help tremendously in promote religious tolerance and better understanding among different faith base organization in the state
“Instead of celebrating the UN one day event, we use one week through visiting scholars and other stake holders in promoting peace stability in the state.“We are one family under God,hence the need to joind hands in making Nigeria a better place”, he stated.
Responding, Mallam Gambo Abdullahi Barnawa pointed that there is a good relationship between muslims and Christians in the state.
He said, there is need to promote tolerance and better understanding among different faith based organization in the state, adding that “we are all created by one God,hence the need to promote peace and unity to all human being
While wishing all muslims and Christians all over the world happy international friendship day, he equally draw the attention all scholar toward visiting tradition religious believer to joining hands together in promoting religious tolerance and better understanding.
Recalled that UN international friendship day is usually celebrated on the 30th of every month of july annually.
The International Day of Friendship was proclaimed in 2011 by the UN General Assembly with the idea that friendship between people. countries, culture and individuals can inspire peace efforts and build bridges between communities.
