JEDDAH, 30 August — Minister of Islamic Affairs Saleh Al-Sheikh has urged Muslims to utilize modern dawa resources, such as computer programs and Internet sites, to propagate the message of Islam.
Opening a major dawa exhibition at the Jeddah International Exhibition Center yesterday, he pointed out that Islamic scholars in the past had made use of every media available in their contemporary societies for dawa.
The weeklong exhibition aims to encourage Muslims to disseminate the message of Islam among non-Muslims. “It will also provide guidelines to non-Arabic speaking expatriates on how to carry out dawa work among their communities,” Al-Sheikh said.
The opening ceremony was attended by a large number of senior officials, including Abdullah Al-Fayez, undersecretary at the Makkah governorate. More than 100 government departments, private firms and charitable organizations are taking part in the exhibition, which is showcasing advanced dawa resources.
The exhibition’s main theme is “Be an Islamic Preacher”, but Ahmad Al-Sabban, deputy Islamic affairs minister for planning and development and chairman of the organizing committee, said it is an “invitation”, not an “order.”
The exhibition, organized by the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Propagation and Guidance, is expected to draw more than 100,000 people, including Muslim and non-Muslim expatriates. Cultural contests — with prizes including cars — will be held every day.
A number of seminars and lectures highlighting the significance of dawa will be held on the sidelines of the exhibition. Minister Al-Sheikh will give a lecture on “Invitation to God in the light of Sura Yousuf in the Qur’an” late this evening. “Dawa and planning” is the topic of Sabban’s lecture at 10.00 a.m. today.
A seminar entitled “Be a preacher” will be held at 10.00 a.m. on Sunday for women. Dr. Khadeeja Babaidan, director of the scientific institute, and Anaheed Al-Sumairy of the College of Education in Jeddah, will address the seminar. Sunday and Monday are reserved for female visitors, when all the organizers in the hall will be female.
Saudi Arabian Airlines has a stall highlighting its efforts in taking the message of Islam to different parts of the world.
The exhibition hall, one of the largest in the Kingdom, is full of stalls, including those of dawa centers, bookstore and computer firms. Charitable organizations are making video presentations of their activities in dawa.
The ministry has plans to hold similar exhibitions in the country’s 13 provincial capitals. Its first such exhibition was held in Dammam last June.
