Reisul-ulema Kavazović: I call on all well-intentioned people of Banja Luka to protect each other and preserve places of worship

(Patria) - The Reisul-ulema of the Islamic Community in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Husein-ef. Kavazović, today called on all well-intentioned people of Banja Luka to, regardless of their life philosophy and orientation, protect each other from all evil and to preserve the places of worship of others as they preserve their own.

Today, the last restored mosque in Banja Luka, Arnaudija, was ceremonially opened. The Reisul-ulema attended this significant event for the entire Islamic Community and addressed the attendees.

He expressed hope that the renovation of the mosques in Banja Luka will restore the old spirit of openness to Banja Luka, encourage those whose roots are from this region to return, and strengthen good interpersonal relationships.

"We hope that the light of the lamps of the Banja Luka mosques will illuminate the path to a better future and help heal deep wounds. If religious buildings do not fulfill this role and do not contribute to interpersonal correctness and integrity, do not encourage people towards nobility and culture, and do not call them to cooperation in good deeds and civilizational development, then they are not fulfilling their intended role," said the Reisul-ulema, among other things.

We present the full address of Reisul-ulema Husein-ef. Kavazović: "Praise be to Allah, Who has distinguished man above all creatures. Who revealed the Quran to mankind. Peace and blessings be upon Muhammad, peace be upon him, the leader of prophets and people, the source of knowledge and wisdom, upon his family and companions. Our Lord, guide us on the paths that lead to You and protect us from people and nations who commit injustice against us.

Excellencies and eminences, brothers and sisters, dear attendees! Esselamu alejkum, peace be upon you! By the will of God and His support, today we witness a great event: the restoration of another symbol of our faith and perseverance in these lands. Today we witness the confirmation of a great historical truth according to which ideas that build will overcome those that destroy. By reopening this ancient building today, which for centuries was a refuge for good people, we are rectifying at least part of the injustice towards this city, its history, and its inhabitants.

Today, in this beautiful city of our beautiful homeland, all sixteen pre-war mosques once again shine with their splendor and bear witness to us and our culture – a culture in which there has always been room for others and for the different.

We are pleased and encouraged that our brothers from Turkey are with us, without whose help we could not have completed this task. With us today are the state minister in the Government of the Republic of Turkey, Mehmet Nuri Ersoj, the President of Diyanet, Dr. Ali Erbaš, the Director General of Foundations of the Republic of Turkey, Sinan Aksu, and other dear friends from this friendly country. Also, brothers and sisters, from this place, we send special greetings to our brother, the esteemed President of the Republic of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, may Allah protect him.

This is our common Bosnian-Ottoman heritage, but also the heritage of all of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe, and the world, which we must protect.

At the same time, our joy is overshadowed by the remembrance of all those who were members of this mosque's community and are no longer with us, who were killed or expelled from their hometown. This is the time and place to remember, among all of them, the honorable Mufti Ibrahim-ef. Halilović, who survived multiple assassination attempts on him and his family and witnessed with his own eyes the destruction of mosques and attempts to erase every trace of the presence of Muslims in this city. Today, we also remember Zahid-ef. Makić, a diligent imam from Banja Luka, who was shot and killed on September 23, 1992, in a city where there were no military operations, while returning home after performing the evening prayer at the “Mehdibeg” mosque. Today, we also remember the late Murat Badić, a sixty-one-year-old man from Cazin, who was stoned to death on the day the foundation stone for the renovation of the Ferhadija mosque was laid. No one has been held accountable for his murder.

We remember, mourn, and pray for the souls of numerous others, our brothers and sisters whose sacrifice we will never forget.

Brothers and sisters, dear attendees.

We are also concerned that today, alongside these renovated mosques, we barely have a community. We hope that the renovation of the Banja Luka mosques will restore the old spirit of openness to this city, encourage those whose roots are from this region to return, and strengthen good interpersonal relationships. We hope that the light of the lamps of the Banja Luka mosques will illuminate the path to a better future and help heal deep wounds. If religious buildings do not fulfill this role and do not contribute to interpersonal correctness and integrity, do not encourage people towards nobility and culture, and do not call them to cooperation in good deeds and civilizational development, then they are not fulfilling their intended role.
A mosque has always been a place that builds within us a measure for our actions in striving to conduct ourselves properly and usefully in relation to everything we encounter.

A mosque teaches people community and thus keeps them in balance and harmony with the world in which they live. Having a measure in life, grasping that measure, is man's greatest skill. Falling short of the measure – deviating from moderation – has negative consequences and brings hatred and malice among people, depriving them of love in their mutual relationships. Therefore, let moderation in all things be our most important principle, the measure of all things. For, according to the Quran, we are the ummah of the middle path, a community of moderation and balance, so let our mosques in our neighborhoods be centers where such an orientation is nurtured, where we recognize each other as brothers and sisters, and from which we emerge each day as better and nobler people.

A mosque is also a place for spreading Islamic and general culture and education. So let this mosque also be a gathering place for good and pious people; a place where great individuals will be raised, people of high morals and high ambitions, men and women who will humbly serve their community and their homeland; and lead in good deeds.

I want to say that Muslims in general have always contributed to progress, preserved, defended, and protected what can make the world better and more beautiful. It is precisely the mosque that has contributed to communication among people always being open and cordial, warm and friendly.

Therefore, we rightly ask ourselves where those came from who were ready to destroy all the mosques in Banja Luka and all others they could reach without reason. I hope that these sixteen beauties of Banja Luka will never again fall prey to destructive hands. God, we pray that it will be so.

No building in which God is truly invoked should bother anyone: neither a Christian church nor a Jewish synagogue. On the contrary, Muslims are called to protect and defend them from the attacks of those who have no awareness of their significance and the value of interpersonal and interreligious relations. And Muslims have done so, and will continue to do so, God willing. It is their religious obligation; their mosque teaches them this. The Quran says: And if Allah had not repelled some people by means of others, the earth would have been corrupted. But Allah is Possessor of bounty over the worlds. (Al-Hajj, 40)

I call on all well-intentioned people of this city, regardless of their life philosophy and orientation, to protect each other from all evil and to preserve the places of worship of others as they preserve their own. We are most deserving of each other. Also, on this occasion, I call on the people of Banja Luka, who were driven out of their city by the criminal regime of that time, to return and live their lives here, as their own, and to contribute, together with other honorable people, to the further progress and prosperity of the city in every respect.

Return to your Bosnia, to your courtyard, because "The sun of a foreign sky will not warm you like this one here," as our poet Aleksa Šantić said, and because you belong to this land and this sky! This mosque needs you; this city needs you; this land needs you. You and your children.

Dear people of Banja Luka!

You have centuries of experience of living together and mutual cultural interpenetration. This is something that flows through your veins and brings warmth to your souls. Preserve this and pass on your experience to your children. Tell them about the beauty of living together.

Those who are unable to live with others and share life space with them will, without a doubt, be pushed to the margins of life and will lag behind others. I call on the leadership of this city to respect the religious beliefs of every person, to treat people equally and give everyone an equal chance for success, and to foster a culture of peace and coexistence. May violence forever leave this city – to the bottom of the landfill of the undesirable, humiliating, and bad.

May all temples in which the God of all people is truly glorified be blessed, and may these sixteen mosques of ours be beacons on the path of joy, success, and beautiful living.

God, bless this city and its people, and may Your name be remembered in it until the Day of Judgment. And may the adhan be freely called and church bells ring. May Arnaudija once again bear witness to the goodness of the people of this city. Amen!