HM King's Personal Representative attends Prayer for Peace

Manama, July 1 (BNA): HM the King's Personal Representative His Highness Shaikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Khalifa attended the evening service on inter-faiths coexistence in the Kingdom of Bahrain at the Sacred Heart Church "Prayer for Peace). The event was organized as part of "This is Bahrain" festival activities and reflects harmony, peaceful coexistence between religions in Bahrain on the occasion of the holy month of Ramadan. His Highness was received upon arrival by the Capital's Governor Hisham bin Abdulrahman Al Khalifa, Yousef Bu Zaboon Chairman of Bahrain's Tolerance & Coexistence Society, Pastor Campello Palin and several church members. The event was attended by senior officials in the Kingdom, several members of the diplomatic corps, Imam Hassan Shalgomi, Rabbi Eric Gozlan who hailed from France especially to participate in the event in addition to several members of the Expatriate Associations Union in the Kingdom and invitees. The Secretary General of the Expatriate Associations Union in the Kingdom of Bahrain, Betsy Mathieson, delivered a speech on this occasion in which she hailed the Kingdom leadership's fostering expatriate communities in Bahrain, affording everybody the right to perform the rituals of their religion freely ensured by the Kingdom's Constitution and Law in the prosperous reign of His Majesty King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. She thanked HH Shaikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Khalifa the Personal Representative of His Majesty the King for attending this event, praising His Highness's support to the Expatriate Associations Union since its inception. She also thanked Imam Hassan Shalgomi and Rabbi Eric Gozlan from Paris who joined to participate in the Prayer for Peace and also thanked Patriarch Palin. She said I stand here as a Muslim in a Catholic Christian church in one of the evenings of the holy month of Ramadan to spread the message of peace and love with a large congregation comprising the followers of various faiths and religions and this reflects the peaceful mutual coexistence and tolerance enjoyed in Bahrain. This is Bahrain where you find an array of mosques, churches, temples of various regions and everybody performing their religious rituals freely. His Highness Shaikh Abdullah bin Hamad Al Khalifa affirmed diversity and richness features of Bahrain's community comprising Muslims, Christians, Jews and followers of all other religions who contributed to the Kingdom of Bahrain's development. His Highness pointed out that HM King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa obtained the Award of Inter-faiths, Inter-Civilisational Coexistence Organisation recently in the United States of America on the occasion of the Organisation's the 25th anniversary, asserting that the award reflects the recognition of the international community of His Majesty's safe, wise policy which has made the Kingdom of Bahrain a model of religious tolerance and peaceful co-existence amongst all community components.