Eid-el-Kabir: Bishop Oyejola urges Christians, Muslims to resist division
TIMOTHY AGBOR, OSOGBO
The bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Osogbo, Most Rev John Oyejola, has charged Christians and Muslims to unite and resist all forms of division among them.
In his message to Muslims on the celebration of Eid-el-Kabir on Tuesday, the cleric said the Catholic Church would continue to strive for unity with people of other faiths and also to work together for the peace and progress of the nation.
He encouraged Muslim faithful to cherish the opportunity for reunion that the festival afforded and harmonise to work against evils around them.
“On behalf of the Catholic faithful in Osun, I greet our Muslim brothers and sisters as they celebrate this year’s Eid-el-Kabir, the great sacrifice to Allah. We thank God for the gift of our fraternity and in humanity, and in our faith in the one God. We, as the Church will continue to cherish the unity and we will do all within our reach to work with our Muslim brothers and sisters to unite, to nurture and to grow towards the peace and progress for our state and nation.
“Festival as this is an important moment for family reunion and celebration. We know that COVID-19 pandemic, insecurity and economic crises in the country made it difficult for many families to reunite for this celebration; all thesame, I encourage everyone to cherish this little avenue available to us, be thankful to God that you are alive, be thankful that you have your family around you and above all, work together to fight against evil around you.
“Resist all lovers of greed, all kinds of greed, injustices and division, which have no root in authentic Islam and authentic Christianity. We call it great sacrifice, we are called to make sacrifice for the growth of our country and for the happiness of our families. I assure you we will join you in prayers for peace, for reconciliation, the healing of our land and for progress of our state and our nation. Happy celebration,” Oyejola told Muslims.
