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The leader of the Vatican Catholic Church, Pope Francis, received a visit from a high-ranking Muslim Hukama Council and Special Representative of the Presidency of the United Arab Emirates (PEA) for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) at the Vatican. Photo/Ministry of Religion of the Republic of Indonesia
VATICAN – Leader of the Vatican Catholic Church Pope Francis received a visit from the Secretary General of the Muslim Hukama Council (MHM) Counselor Mohamed Abdelsalam at the Vatican, Monday (29/5/2023).
The presence of the Secretary General of MHM coincided with the visit of the Director General and Special Representative of the United Arab Emirates Presidency (PEA) for the 28th Conference of the Parties (COP28) which will discuss climate change.
The meeting of the three parties discussed plans to launch a joint initiative on climate change ahead of the COP28 conference in Abu Dhabi, PEA, in November 2023.
The joint initiative is in the form of a plan to involve religious figures and institutions as well as the community to help realize what is the goal of COP28.
This initiative invites institutions and religious leaders in the world to unite steps and play an active role in efforts to protect planet Earth—the shared home of the world community’s extended family—which is a common goal.
More than that, the initiative aims to explore and increase the role of religion in bridging communication between different cultures and between different nations and open new horizons in looking at the issue of climate change.
“MHM and the Vatican share the same view regarding the important role of religion and religious leaders in providing practical solutions to the various negative impacts caused by climate change,” said Counselor Mohamed Abdelsalam after the meeting at the Vatican.
The Secretary General of the MHM and the Leaders of the Vatican Church also discussed the possibility of opening a special session for dialogue between religious leaders on the sidelines of the upcoming COP28 in Abu Dhabi.
It is hoped that the special dialogue session of religious leaders will provide enrichment and exchange of views and views on religion in overcoming the adverse effects of climate change.
MHI support
The Indonesian Hukama Council (MHI), as a branch of MHM, fully supports the breakthrough involving religious figures in COP28.
Member of the MHM Executive Committee who is also the supervisor of MHI TGB Zainul Majdi said climate change is a common threat that must immediately find a solution in a synergistic and systematic way. As a form of support, his party will hold a number of activities relevant to the COP28 theme.
“We will hold seminars on a number of campuses involving religious leaders regarding the importance of strengthening their role in facing the challenges of climate change. Indonesia is very strategic in this role, because the role of religious leaders is very large in the life of the nation and state,” said TGB Zainul Majdi.
“The involvement of religious leaders is very strategic in raising awareness as well as mobilizing the community to take part in efforts to overcome the threat of climate change,” he said.
The United Arab Emirates will host COP28 from 30 November to 12 December 2023. COP28 is a joint effort by the world community to overcome the adverse effects of climate change. Climate change is a global challenge that threatens life on planet Earth.
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