Inaugural ceremony for Holy Birth Week unites politicians

Organized by the Religious Affairs Directorate, the ceremony was held at İstanbul’s Sinan Erdem Sports Hall with hundreds of people attending as well as many politicians including Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ, İstanbul Mayor Kadir Topbaş and some foreign religious leaders.

Every year, a committee formed by the Religious Affairs Directorate determines a virtue to be used as the main theme for Holy Birth week. This year’s theme is brotherhood.

The ceremony opened with the recital of the Turkish national anthem and then a part of the Quran. Songs were then sung by a choir comprising 40 students from 35 countries. The event continued with a speech from Mehmet Görmez, head of the Religious Affairs Directorate, who said that the events carried out as part of the Holy Birth Week celebrations aim to take a virtue that humanity seems to be ignorant of as the main theme for the events and emphasize the significance of that virtue.

Noting the fact that much blood has been shed in Syria a result of the ignorance of the bond of brotherhood the Syrians share with each other, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan stressed the importance of this year’s theme of brotherhood, saying that the communities and countries that share the same history, culture and religion should attach particular sensitivity to this principle. “Sadly the unfortunate incidents that Muslims in the modern world face today are as a result of breaking basic principles such as brotherhood. Once we grasp the real meaning of these principles and we fully and attentively apply them, there is no doubt that even the biggest problems can be solved,” Erdoğan said.

Also speaking at the ceremony, CHP leader Kılıçdaroğlu said that if we grow away from the principles of Islam and the Prophet’s teachings, we will face nothing but disappointment. “No politics and no ideology can fill the emptiness that arises from the lack of the Prophet’s virtues,” he noted.