Dr. Hassan Al-Noamani, President of Sohag University, witnessed the activities of the educational forum for imams and preachers of Sohag Governorate, which was organized within the framework of the cooperation protocol between the Egyptian Ministries of Endowments and Higher Education and in accordance with the Ministry of Endowments’ plan to increase the education of imams and preachers, in the presence of Dr. Khaled Omran, Vice President of the University for Community Service and Environmental Development Affairs. Dr. Mohamed Hosni, Undersecretary of the Ministry of Endowments in Sohag, Ashraf El-Qadi, Secretary-General of the University, Major General Tariq Hafez, Director of the University Security Department, and a number of staff members and male and female preachers from the governorate, in the glass hall in the old campus.
At the beginning of his speech, the university president welcomed the guests, expressing his happiness at the fruitful cooperation between the university, the Ministry of Endowments, and Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, and the presence of religious and scientific values and figures from the male and female preachers of Sohag, stressing that the presence of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif and its graduates in Egypt is what enhances the good spirit and distinguishes it from other Islamic countries.
It strengthens its position among them, adding that the forum aims to strengthen communication between scientific and religious institutions in the country.
In accordance with the directives of the political leadership to link religious discourse to societal issues, renew it, and facilitate its access to segments of society in general and youth in particular, to correct misconceptions and values.
Therefore, every institution, whether religious, educational, or civil, must reach these groups, simplify the concepts of religion and its tolerant foundations, instill positive values, and strengthen their affiliation to their religion and their homeland to build the new republic.
In the same context, Dr. Muhammad Hosni pointed out that today’s forum’s importance comes from the standpoint that the preacher’s knowledge must include the scientific, social, and cultural aspects.
Therefore, the Ministry of Endowments developed a cultural building program for imams and preachers at the republic level, due to the necessity of permanent and continuous communication between the preacher and his community so that he can communicate with people.
They also must be familiar with all the issues of society and even the world and what is happening in it, and must be armed with knowledge of other aspects and fields, and from here comes the effective participation of the university through cultural exchange between representatives of knowledge from the university’s employees and providing the preachers with their vast fields of knowledge.
It is worth noting that the meeting was attended by Dr. Hamdi Hassanein, Dean of Faculty of Graduate Studies and Environmental Research, and Dr. Alaa Hassan Jaber, Head of the Department of Doctrine and Philosophy at Al-Azhar University, and it included the issue of sustainable development and Egypt’s Vision 2030 from a social perspective, the role of male and female preachers in societal issues, and their role in promoting the spirit of Loyalty and belonging to the homeland, and it also included that the Islamic faith urges us to cooperate and advise, especially in social matters, and the role of imams and preachers in advising and guiding all segments of society.
