Damaging Environment against Religious Values
Abuza Ebrahimi Torkaman made the remark in the first round of interfaith dialogue between Iran and France.
Featuring “Environment in Islam and Catholic Christianity”, it was held at the organization’s headquarters in Tehran on Monday, with a number of Iranian scholars and thinkers as well as a religious delegation from France in attendance.
Ebrahimi Torkaman underlined that religious teachings allow human beings to make use of the environment but the problem is that mankind sometimes damages the environment and to prevent it special binding laws are necessary.
“We are not allowed to behave toward the environment as we like but we need to be good trustees and protect it for future generations,” he added.
The ICRO chief further said that contemplating the nature is one of the means to know God and that destroying the environment is an act of war against God.
Bishop Jean-Marc Noël Aveline, Auxiliary Bishop of Marseille who is leading the French delegation, in his speech described environmental pollutions as a major problem in today’s world and stressed the need for the faithful to contribute to the protection of the environment.
He also underlined the importance of interreligious dialogue and its role in promoting environmental protection.
Also addressing the event was Professor Henri De La Hougue, who deplored mankind’s attempts to pillage the environment instead of using it properly and protecting it.
He stressed that everyone should be able to use the environment based on justice.
Exploiting the environment without respecting it is very dangerous, he went on to say.
ICRO’s Center for Interreligious Dialogue has organized the two-day dialogue, which will conclude on Tuesday.
Protection of environment according to Islamic and Catholic Christian texts, responsibility of religious leaders and faithful in protection of environment, and role of extremism in damaging the environment will be among the topics of discussion.
The idea of holding interfaith dialogue between Iran and France was first raised during a trip to Paris by head of ICRO’s Center for Interreligious Dialogue Hojat-ol-Islam Mohammad Mehdi Taskhiri.
http://iqna.ir/fa/news/3779300
