Syed Mukarram Nazeer, Canada Correspondent
On 16 October 2023, the World Religions Conference was held in Vernon, British Columbia, Canada.
On the morning of 16 October after offering congregational Fajr prayer at the Baitur Rahman Mosque in Vancouver, a group of eight volunteers led by Regional Amir Rizwan Peerzada Sahib left for Vernon, BC. Vernon is a small town in the Okanagan region with a population of nearly 40,000 and located approximately 440 km northeast of Vancouver, BC.
The group was to host the 5th World Religions Conference on the topic of “Life after death, myth or reality?” Jamaat-e-Ahmadiyya British Columbia has been hosting similar events in surrounding areas to promote interfaith harmony and build bridges among them.
The faiths represented included Baha‘ism, Buddhism, Christianity (First Baptist Church), Christianity (Latter-Day Saint Church), Christianity (Presbyterian Church), Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and Spirituality.
Each speaker was allotted eight minutes to shed light on the topic from the point-of-view of their respective religion. Silent prayer brought the event to an end. Over 350 people attended the event including Mayor of Vernon Victor Cumming and two City Councillors.
Global News Media attended the event and interviewed the missionary of Vancouver on the ongoing situation in Palestine, who provided the Islamic teachings to solve such conflicts.