Ayatollah Khamenei

The clergy should use cyberspace to exhibit real Islam: Ayatollah Khamenei

“The seminary schools (hawzas), as well as the clergymen should be familiar with cyberspace, in order to grasp this opportunity to elaborate on Islamic knowledge and concepts.”

Ayatollah Khamenei, the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, began this years’ cycle of Dars-e Kharij Thursday morning as the new academic year of Islamic seminaries began.

In the first class of this academic year, His Eminence referred to the existence of many extensive plans for diverting the minds and hearts of the people and particularly the youth from religion. He said that the first and the most important responsibility of the clergy is to confront the plan to destroy religion and modesty, reiterating: “By understanding cyberspace and benefitting from the opportunities that it presents, Islamic seminaries and the clergy should explain Islamic teachings and concepts.” 

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution stressed the necessity of dutifulness and judiciousness in the area of promotion and clarification of religious issues, saying: “If one does not know one’s duties correctly, then knowledge, piety and even courage will not produce positive and expected results.”

Ayatollah Khamenei defined insight as knowledge about the needs and realities of society and added: “Insight means knowing what things youth need today and what is recorded or should be recorded on their ready and enthusiastic hearts.”

Referring to the massive expenditures that have been made and the numerous plans that have been formulated against the faith and beliefs of the people, His Eminence said: “By producing and promoting falsehoods and by producing anti-modesty content, the enemy is after diverting the attention of pious and healthy youth away from the essence of religion. He is after lifting the veil of modesty and today, this is done through cyberspace.”

The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution stated that confronting this plan is the first and most important responsibility of the clergy. He reiterated: “Islamic seminaries and religious wise men should create in themselves the capability to confront this large enemy front.”

Ayatollah Khamenei expressed regret at the unfamiliarity of some religious advocates with new technological tools and at the lack of understanding about the importance of cyberspace in some officials, saying: “Cyberspace involves countless advantages and disadvantages at the same time. By benefitting from its opportunities, we should promote Islamic concepts on a massive scale. To that end, the Supreme Council of Cyberspace has been formed with the purpose of focusing on thinking, decision-making and action in this area.”

His Eminence mentioned that identifying and answering today’s fallacies and falsehoods are among the important tasks that Islamic seminaries should carry out. He added: “This is not in conflict with fiqahat [research and capability in fiqh] in any way because fiqh is not confined only to practical rules- in fact ‘Allah the Great’s fiqh’ is these same Islamic teachings. Therefore, in order to respond to religious fallacies, we should work in the same way that we do when we thoroughly and extensively work on fiqhi studies.”

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