On May 25 this year, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of Independence of the Republic of Kazakhstan, at the platform of N. Nazarbayev Center for Development of Interfaith and Inter-civilization Dialogue, the grand opening of the international photo exhibition «The Way of Peace and Harmony», dedicated to the world religion – Christianity, took place.
The second photo exhibition in a series of thematic photo exhibitions, dedicated to world and traditional religions, reveals the depth of the spiritual values of Christianity, which symbolize interreligious harmony and unity, and is also aimed at consolidating society around basic human and spiritual values.
At the event welcoming speeches provided by Vice-Minister of Information and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan S. Egizbayev, Chairman of the Board of N. Nazarbayev Center for Development of Interfaith and Inter-civilization Dialogue B. Sarsenbayev, Apostolic Nuncio in Kazakhstan Francis Assisi Chullikatt, Deputy Chairman of the Department of the Metropolitan District of Kazakhstan for Church and Society Relations, Dean of the Assumption Cathedral, Archpriest D. Baydek.
In addition, the opening ceremony was attended by representatives of government agencies, Kazakhstani religious associations, foreign diplomatic missions of Brazil, Georgia, Indonesia, Mongolia, Oman and Russia in the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as leading republican media.
Opening the photo exhibition, the Chairman of the Board of N. Nazarbayev Center Bulat Sarsenbayev emphasized that during the years of Independence Kazakhstan has achieved significant success in matters of interreligious dialogue. «The unity of all ethnic groups, representatives of different confessions and religions living in harmony on the territory of the country is one of the greatest achievements and riches», - the speaker said.
In addition, noting the outstanding role of Elbasy N. Nazarbayev in creating a unique dialogue platform – the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, as well as the consistent policy of the Head of State K. Tokayev in promoting Kazakhstan's positions as a global center for the dialogue of religions and civilizations, B. Sarsenbayev informed the guests on the priority areas of activities and activities of the Center, the preparatory work carried out for the XIX meeting of the Secretariat of the Congress this year, as well as for the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions in 2022.
Speaking with a welcoming speech, Vice Minister of Information and Social Development of the Republic of Kazakhstan S. Egizbayev emphasized that Kazakhstan, possessing a unique ethnocultural and religious diversity, throughout its history has maintained an interethnic and interreligious world, maintained a balance of interests of various ethnocultural communities. In this regard, it is fundamentally important to preserve our own achievements in building a stable society, and polyethnicity and polyconfessionalism should become factors of creation and progress.
In addition, the Apostolic Nuncio in Kazakhstan, Francis Assisi Chullikatt, highly appreciated the importance of diplomatic relations between Kazakhstan and the Vatican for 29 years, which made it possible to establish constructive interaction between our states, and also became a clear confirmation of mutual consent and deepest trust.
At the end of the solemn ceremony, the participants of the event got acquainted with the presented photographs of the participants of the Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, as well as international partners of N. Nazarbayev Center, including the Orthodox Church of Kazakhstan, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of St. Mary in Nur-Sultan, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Kazakhstan, The Department for External Church Relations of the Moscow Patriarchate for Interreligious Relations and the republican newspaper «Kazakhstanskaya Pravda».
Also, we remind that the photo exhibition «The Way of Peace and Harmony» will continue until June 25, 2021 at the Palace of Peace and Reconciliation for everyone, observing all precautions.
