"MOST INFLUENTIAL JEWISH FIGURE IN THE WIDER MUSLIM WORLD"
- Times of Israel -
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H.E. RECEP TAYYIP ERDOĞAN
President of the Republic of Türkiye
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On September 19, during his visit to New York to attend the 77th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, H.E. Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of the Republic of Türkiye, received representatives of the American Jewish community at the Turkish House.
FFEU President Rabbi Marc Schneier along with Turkish Ambassador to the United States, H.E. Murat Mercan, facilitated the historic Ankara meeting between the Turkish President and Israeli President Isaac Herzog back in March. The Rabbi is seeing in the above photo reviewing with President Erdoğan the great success of that encounter.
Noting the progress and the strengthening of the relations, within a few months, between American Jewry and Türkiye, Rabbi Schneier asked President Erdoğan if he plans to visit Israel soon and received a positive response from the Turkish President.
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H.E. YAIR LAPID
Prime Minister of the State of Israel
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On September 21, Rabbi Schneier joined a delegation of American Jewish leaders in New York to meet with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid. The Prime Minister inquired about Rabbi Schneier's Global Muslim-Jewish initiatives and his recent trips to Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.
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From 11-13 September, Rabbi Schneier visited Baku, Azerbaijan.
Rabbi Schneier’s first stop was the Limmud FSU Conference, where he was invited to serve as a keynote speaker. In his speech, the Rabbi paid tribute to the singular model that Azerbaijan represents in the Greater Muslim World in supporting its indigenous Jewish community and its 30 years of warm relations with Israel.
Real TV, an Azerbaijani news channel, sat down with Rabbi Schneier to discuss the Limmud FSU Conference. You may watch the full interview here.
Arutz Sheva, the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Stegmi interviewed the Rabbi and included excerpts of his remarks at the conference in their articles.
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H.E. MIKAYIL JABBAROV
Minister of Economy, Republic of Azerbaijan
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Following the conference, on 12 September, the Rabbi was received by H.E. Mikayil Jabbarov, Minister of Economy for the Republic of Azerbaijan. During their meeting, the Minister and the Rabbi exchanged views on issues of common concern, including the rich cultural heritage and tolerance values of tolerance and coexistence in Azerbaijan. The Rabbi thanked the Minister for the government and the Azeri people’s warm hearts shown toward the flourishing Jewish community that has been a part of Azerbaijan for millennia.
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H.E. MUBARIZ GURBANLI
Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations
Republic of Azerbaijan
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Later that day, Rabbi Schneier had a productive visit with H.E. Mubariz Gurbanli, Chairman of the State Committee on Religious Associations of the Republic of Azerbaijan at which they discussed upcoming interfaith initiatives.
The Association is translating into Azeri Rabbi Schneier’s book Sons of Abraham: A Candid Conversation about the Issues That Divide and Unite Jews and Muslims. It will published in Azerbaijan in Spring 2023.
The book has been translated into multiple languages, including Arabic, French, Hebrew and Indonesian. "Access in many languages is a key component for promoting through the book and its curriculum mutual understanding, tolerance, and peaceful coexistence," said Rabbi Schneier at the meeting.
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H.E. ANAR KARIMOV
Minister of Culture, Republic of Azerbaijan
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The following day on 13 September, Rabbi Schneier was hosted by H.E. Minister Anar Karimov, Minister of Culture for the Republic of Azerbaijan. They had a positive and fruitful conversation about the Peace4Culture Global Call, as well as the Baku Forum – interreligious platforms to which Rabbi Schneier has been honored to address on several occasions.
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H.E. KASSYM-JOMART TOKAYEV
President of the Republic of Kazakhstan
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FFEU President Rabbi Marc Schneier addressed the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, convened under the Chairmanship of Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, 14-15 September, in Nur-Sultan (Astana), Kazakhstan's capital.
The high-level, two-day gathering saw the participation of approximately 100 delegates from 50 countries, including eminent religious leaders such as HH Pope Francis, Grand Imam of al-Azhar Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb, Russian Orthodox Metropolitan Anthony Sevryuk of Volokolamsk, the two Chief Rabbis of Israel Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi David Lau and Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef.
In his remarks, Rabbi Schneier made an appeal to the global audience. “We need to strengthen the role of religious actors in peacebuilding, as well as bolster efforts to uphold the importance of freedom of religion and belief around the world.”
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"American-born Rabbi Marc Schneier, Founder and President of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding, and a participant at the 7th Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions, underscores the importance of religion in peace-building and speaks against imposing religious beliefs on others" - Vatican News
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“There is no question that the Abraham Accords has had a profound impact and opened up an even greater dialogue among Muslims and Jews,” Rabbi Marc Schneier told i24NEWS.
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"The Astana Times spoke to Rabbi Marc Schneier, the congress’s reputable speaker representing the Jewish community in the United States and the president of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding (FFEU), who shared his vision on the unique features of the congress, as well as Kazakhstan’s efforts in building a society where all religions could co-exist".
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H.E. MAULEN ASHIMBAYEV
Chairman of the Senate, Republic of Kazakhstan
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At the end of the Congress, H.E. Maulen Ashimbayev, Head of the Secretariat of the Congress of the Leaders of World and Traditional Religions and Chairman of the Senate of Kazakhstan, presented the official signing pen of the Kazakhstan Senate to Rabbi Schneier in recognition of his long-standing support and commitment to the Congress.
Earlier in June, Rabbi Schneier hosted in New York City a round table discussion followed by a reception to welcome the interfaith Kazakhstani leadership delegation representing Muslim, Jewish, Evangelical Christian and Baha'i communities. The keynote speaker was H.E. Yerzhan Ashikbayev, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to the United States.
These events launched the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions from the United States.
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KAZAKHSTAN’S MAIN SYNAGOGUE REDEDICATION CEREMONY |
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While in Nur-Sultan, Rabbi Schneier spoke at the rededication ceremony of the Main Synagogue in Kazakhstan, headed by Rabbi Shmuel Karnaukch. The two Chief Rabbis of Israel, Ashkenazi Chief Rabbi Lau and Sephardic Chief Rabbi Yossef, Israeli Ambassador Edwin Glusman, and philanthropists Alexander Mashkevich and Aaron Frenkel participated in the ceremony as well.
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UNITY PLANTING TREE CEREMONY
Park of Peace and Reconciliation, Nur-Sultan
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Dr. Abdul Aziz Sarhan, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League’s relief agency (the International Association for Relief, Care and Development), and Rabbi Schneier concluded their visit to Kazakhstan by planting a tree in Nur-Sultan's Park of Peace and Reconciliation. "When we plant trees, we plant the seeds of peace and hope," said Rabbi Schneier.
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ARAB NEWS BIWEEKLY COLUMN
- Leading English newspaper in the Gulf -
Published in Saudi Arabia
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"The Jewish community of Yemen is no longer, but Yemenis are honoring their own shared past and patrimony by preserving its memory. By respecting the role of Jews in Yemen’s long and storied history, Yemeni leaders are showing inclusivity and a will to protect minorities in the nation’s future as it emerges from this tragic conflict (...).
Such reconstruction efforts can remind all Yemenis of the primacy of tolerance in their culture" - Rabbi Marc Schneier
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"Mohamed Salah’s actions demonstrate Egypt still can tap into a wellspring of interfaith togetherness to take the nation forward" - Rabbi Marc Schneier
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