PUTRAJAYA: The first meeting of the reactivated Inter-Faith Harmony Committee will be held next month, said Minister in the Prime Minister's Department (Religious Affairs) Datuk Dr Mohd Na'im Mokhtar (pic).

Mohd Na’im said that the committee meeting, which acts as a medium of discussion between religious leaders to resolve issues related to religion and race, will be co-chaired by him and National Unity Minister Datuk Aaron Ago Dagang.

"Previously, I expressed my wish to the Minister of National Unity (Aaron), to reactivate the Harmony Committee. This is because this committee plays an important role in organising various programmes for the purpose of strengthening unity between races.

"The Minister (Aaron) accepted the proposal. This is a reflection of the spirit of togetherness between us,” he said at a press conference after attending the national-level 1445 Hijrah/2023 Maulidur Rasul celebration, at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre (PICC) here on Thursday (Sept 28).

The event, themed ‘Perpaduan Teras Malaysia Madani’ (Unity Pillar of Malaysia Madani), was graced by the presence of the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Al-Sultan Abdullah Ri'ayatuddin Al-Mustafa Billah Shah and Raja Permaisuri Agong Tunku Hajah Azizah Aminah Maimunah Iskandariah.

Also in attendance were Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim and his wife, Datin Seri Dr Wan Azizah.

Mohd Na'im said that the reactivation of the committee which was established on Aug 14, 2020 has enabled his department to empower the wasati (moderate) Islamic approach, to explain to non-Muslims that Islam is a religion of ‘rahmah’ (mercy).

"The wasati approach is used, because it is not too extreme, conservative or stagnant, nor is it too loose and straying from authentic Islamic disciplines,” he said.

In another development, Mohd Na'im said that he would hold a meeting with Ipoh Timur Member of Parliament, Howard Lee Chuan How, in the near future, to explain to him the discipline related to the interpretation of verses from the Holy Quran.

"This is a harmonious approach. Insya-Allah, if there is an engagement such as this with non-Muslims, they will be able to accept Islam as a religion of ‘rahmah’,” he said.

On Sept 26, Lee issued a public apology for his act of quoting a Quran verse in a video clip on his social media page. - Bernama