GUYANA on Friday observed the National Day of Fasting and Prayer and with the three major religions in the country observing fasting periods all at the same time, President, Dr Irfaan Ali called on the religious community to play an integral part in supporting his ‘One Guyana’ platform.
A number of persons including Christians, Muslims and Hindus filled the compound of the Arthur Chung Conference Centre for the official observance of the day of fasting and prayer.
President, Dr Irfaan Ali, addressing those gathered, said Guyanese must uplift each other.
“I greet you with strong conviction based on spiritual teachings and underpinnings, that we have really no other choice but to embrace each other, we have no other choice than to lift each other up rather than tear each other down, we have no other choice than to celebrate each other rather than destroy each other,” the President said.
The Head of State then revealed that it was almost a week ago that he realised that having a national day of fasting and prayers would be good for Guyana as the people of the three major religions are current on fast and in prayers with respect to their holy observances.
The President related that he took some time to go through the foundation of various religious teachings surrounding fasting and recognise that the foundation of these teachings can also set the foundation for the ‘One Guyana’ initiative.
“I realised that for us to establish the foundation of principles that the ‘One Guyana’ must stand on, the church, the mosque, the temples and the religious bodies must be an integral part of that foundation because fundamentally the principles that govern a society that is just, are the principles that govern religious undertaking,” he told the Arthur Chung Conference Centre gathering.
See the entire article at: Guyana Chronicle