Defiant of ISIL, Syrian Muslims Open Mosque Named After Virgin Mary
Observers called the opening a symbol of peace and religious tolerance between the country's multiethnic, multi-confessional society, Sputnik news website reported.
Speaking at the inauguration, Syrian Minister of Religious Endowments Mohammad Abdul-Sattar al-Sayyed noted that this was the first time in the Muslim world when a mosque has been named after the Virgin Mary, mother of Jesus Christ. He added that the mosque embodies calls for amenity and fraternity between Syrians of all faiths.
Al-Sayyed noted that Syria is one of the places where Islamic culture and architecture originated, adding that Syrians of all confessions deplore and condemn the barbarity with which ultra-extremists from ISIL and other terrorist groups operating inside Syria demolish and deface places of worship.
Tartous and Lattakia Maronite Patriarchate representative Antoine Deeb noted that the symbolic gesture of naming the Mosque after Mary shows that Islam and Christianity share the messages of peace and love.
In Islam, Mary is considered to be one of the most righteous, chaste and virtuous women, and is the only woman to be mentioned by name in the Quran. As in the Christian faith, the Quran states that Jesus was born of virgin birth. Jesus is considered to be a messenger of God, and serves as one of the major prophets of Islam.
