RELIGIOUS LEADERS MUST ‘BRIDGE’ DIVIDES, FOSTERING HARMONY AMONG RELIGIONS AND CULTURES

PETALING JAYA, It is the responsibility and sacred duty of all religious leaders to bridge divides and teach their followers about the importance of creating harmony and understanding among different religions and cultures. Swami Brahmaviharidas, the head of the BAPS Hindu Mandir of the United Arab Emirates, said that creating harmony is more than a mere aspiration, it is a force for universal peace. 'We must ask ourselves, are the things we preach the same as what we teach our followers? 'And is that the same thing we feel in our hearts? That harmony, unity, and diversity are indeed necessary? 'It is very important that we understand this most basic idea of the world,' he said at the International Conference of Religious Leaders 2024, themed 'Unity Within Diversity' held here today. Elaborating, Swami Brahmaviharidas said he personally believed that every religion, culture, and civilisation share and care for the same values that sustain all mankind. 'At the same time, can we create a little bit of he aven on this earth, the one we keep promising year after year? It is our responsibility to generate that idea. 'And how will we go about it? Less by our words but more by our actions,' he added. The International Conference of Religious Leaders 2024 kicked off this morning, drawing approximately 2,000 religious and intellectual figures from 57 countries. Source: BERNAMA News Agency