Egypt’s Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ahmed al-Tayeb and the UK’s Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby on Tuesday (July 17th) took part in an Emerging Peacemakers Forum, an open dialogue attended by Egyptian and British youth.
The 10-day forum was organised by Al-Azhar in co-operation with the Anglican Church, and aimed to discuss the role of religious leaders, Egypt’s Ahram Online reported.
The forum, comprised of 50 youth from both east and west who have an interest in the religious leadership and potential of young leaders, convened at Lambeth Palace in London, the Archbishop of Canterbury’s official residence.
During the forum, the Grand Imam and the Archbishop responded to a number of questions from students, encouraging them to become peacemakers in their countries.
Al-Tayeb advised young people "to avoid speaking and arguing about and comparing different faiths, stressing that it is not a dialogue that is important in religion and faith, but human values, such as tolerance, advocacy, wisdom and good advice".
Egypt’s Immigration Minister Nabila Makram, British Ambassador to Cairo John Casson, secretary general of the Council of Muslim Elders Ali al-Nuaimi and a delegation from Al-Azhar also were among the attendees.
The Archbishop thanked the Grand Imam "for an honest and hope-filled conversation about the role of religious leaders in our world today".
