The Grand Imam Dr. Ahmad Al-Tayyeb, Sheikh Al-Azhar returned safely to the homeland from his trip to Abu Dhabi in which His eminence headed the “Dialogue Towards an Integrated World” in cooperation with the Anglican church, with the presence of Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, spiritual head of the Anglican communion.

The Grand Imam Sheikh Al-Azhar and Archbishop Justin Welby spoke of the role of religious leaders in bringing hope to the hearts of people, as well as the challenges which face the world today, East and West, and the possibility of the contribution of the meeting of the wise leaders of the East and West in overcoming such challenges.

Moreover, topics of discussion included religious diversity, experiences of mutual coexistence, and the role of religions in strengthening active citizenship and instilling human principles, as well as the obstacles facing dialogue, coexistence and possible solutions, followed by the closing statement which recommended the necessity of exerting efforts to create a peaceful integrated world through dialogue.

In his speech, His eminence the Grand Imam stated that many of the tragedies from which humanity is suffering today, are a result of the spread of materialistic thought and philosophies of atheism, as well as policies that turned their backs on revealed religions, and ridiculed them and their teachings. Such policies failed greatly in providing alternatives to religion that would achieve happiness for human beings. His eminence emphasized that today humanity aspires to return to divine religions and teachings after it had a great deal of experiences which almost led to its perdition and complete destruction.

Archbishop Justin Welby, Head of the Anglican Communion stated that Christians who abide by the teachings of Jesus, accept the other, and know that God created people different from one another, and it is a duty to protect the rights of others same as one demands the protection of his own rights. At the end of his speech, Archbishop Welby expressed his appreciation of the great efforts made by Sheikh Al-Azhar as regards world peace, through his European tours which had an immense impact in the European community.