Pope Francis in Rome and Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayeb in Cairo today, with the help of other religious figures of all religions, called for an international prayer for an end to the pandemic.
“We do not pray against each other, one religious tradition against another. We are all united as human beings,” Pope Francis said today in his daily service at the Vatican.
From Cairo, the Grand Imam of al-Azhar, one of the most important hierarchical titles of Sunni Islam, advised the faithful to “ask Almighty Allah to save all people from this misery and to help scientists succeed in finding it a cure.”
“May God stop this tragedy,” Pope Francis added. The pontiff and the grand imam of Al-Azhar, Ahmed el-Tayeb, signed the “Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together” in February 2019, in Abu Dhabi (United Arab Emirates), claiming freedom of belief and expression, and protection of places of worship, as well as the establishment of full citizenship and reject the discriminatory use of the term minorities which engenders feelings of isolation and inferiority.
In Lebanon, President Michel Aoun called on “Lebanese to pray for God to protect humanity from the danger of the coronavirus pandemic, in response to the call of Pope Francis and the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar.”
“May the sounds of minarets and church bells unite to silence all those voices that are harming our national unity,” he added.
Source: ANA-MPA