Muslim leader: Pope to unite country divided by faith

MANILA, Philippines—The visit of Pope Francis would bring a promise of unity to a country divided by faith, a Muslim leader said.

“The Pope is bringing universal peace to our country,” said Police Supt. Ebra Moxsir, Imam Council of the Philippines (ICP) president, during the Alliance of Religions dialogue held on Saturday in Camp Crame, Quezon City.

Moxsir, one of the 10 religious leaders to meet with the Pope, said the importance of peace was tackled in the interfaith dialogue.

“The Filipino Muslim community is supporting his advocacy, particularly his desire for the Catholics and Muslims to have a symbiotic relation,” Moxsir told Philippine Daily Inquirer on the sidelines of the dialogue.

“Pope Francis is promoting peace. My Muslim brothers and sisters support peace because Islam means peace,” he said.

Pope Francis has shown his commitment in improving the Christian-Muslim relations by praying in a mosque in Istanbul, Turkey, and by saying equating Islam with violence was wrong while aboard the plane from the Muslim country.

Muslims have been labeled terrorists and salot sa lipunan (plague of society) because of careless generalizations and lack of understanding on Islam, said Moxsir, who is also the chief of spiritual ministry division of the Philippine National Police (PNP) Chaplain Service.

“Not all Muslims are terrorists,” he said.

Misconceptions on Muslims were caused by “illiteracy or ignorance on the religion,” he added.

Instead of talking about doctrines, Moxsir said finding the “commonality and similarity” among different religions would lead to understanding and respect.

Everyone, no matter what religion, needed love, peace and hope, he said.

“We are all created by God. We all belong to a family or to a tribe,” he added.

ICP and Heavenly Culture, World Peace, Restoration of Light (HWPL) gathered Muslims, Hindus and Evangelicals in the dialogue on Saturday “to discuss the ‘truth’ about their respective religions.”

HPWL, founded by Korean religious leader and world peace advocate Lee Man-hee, is a nongovernment organization that engages political and religious leaders and the youth in talks and activities that would allow them to look beyond differences in culture, belief and region.

“Religion divides us,” said HPWL director Agnes Reyes. “The organization is finding ways for representatives from different religions to come together and unite for world peace.”

Representing the Evangelicals, Reyes said religious leaders play a big role in promoting peace.

“We have to hear and learn from the different religious leaders and seek the truth,” she said.

Reyes said religious leaders need to be open-minded to find the “truths” that unite religions.

“We are fortunate to have Pope Francis who is reforming the Church,” said Police Senior Supt. Alberto Lucea of the PNP Directorate for Integrated Police Operations in the Visayas.

Lucea, who represented the Catholic faith, said “unity is essential in every religion.”