These days in Moscow, as part of the celebration of the 1100th anniversary of the adoption of Islam by Volga Bulgaria, the conference “Volga Bulgaria and Islam. Eleven Centuries of History” has been held. The event was organized in the Victory Museum. Among the participants of the event there were representatives of Islamic Universities, as well as religious and public figures. The guests of honor included a delegation from Syria headed by Ayman Sayed, Head of the Religious Department of the Ministry for Religious Affairs and Awqaf.
At the conference discussion panels, the participants discussed the role of Islam and the heritage of the Bulgarian peoples in the development of the Russian Ummah. The organizers, the Federal Agency for Nationalities of Russia with the support of the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences, also stressed that heritage was the world heritage and its actualization had a positive effect on the country’s image in the international arena. Besides, the event contributes to the implementation of the national goals of the Russian Federation, stated by Russian President Vladimir Putin in his decree, namely ‘the creation of conditions for bringing up a harmoniously developed and socially responsible personality on the basis of spiritual and moral values of the peoples of the Russian Federation, historical and national-cultural traditions’.
Speaking at the conference, Deputy Head of the Presidential Administration of the Russian Federation Magomedsalam Magomedov noted that Russia had always been a multinational country, where many peoples freely practice their religion and preserve their historical and cultural wealth. ‘Serving the public ideals of good and peace, comprehensive education of socially responsible youth, ready to resist manifestations of extremism, radicalism, Nazism and falsification of history, is an effective force in responding to the challenges of the modern world,’ the representative of the Russian President stressed.
Stanislav Bedkin, Deputy Head of the Federal Agency for Ethnic Affairs, in his speech addressed the participants of the conference in Moscow and added that the adoption of Islam by Volga Bulgaria was a key event in the history of Islam in Russia: ‘Volga Bulgaria and its successors became the centre of the spread of Islam in modern Russia, and as a consequence Muslim traditions have been one of the foundations of the national identity of our peoples who practice Islam’.
Students of the Bulgarian Islamic Academy took an active part in the conference. In their speeches they told about the peculiarities of Muslin written culture and theological heritage of the Bulgarian period, highlighted the Muslim question and the position of Muslims in society in the early XX century, and talked about the role of official clergy in the prevention of extremism.
The conference participants heard a welcoming speech from Rustam Minnikhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan, Chairman of the Strategic Vision Group ‘Russia – Islamic World’, Mufti Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, Chairman of the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation, Rushan Abbyasov, First Deputy Chairman of the Russian Mufti Council and the Spiritual Administration of Muslims of the Russian Federation, Rafik Mukhametshin, Rector of the Russian Islamic University, and Ainur Timerkhanov, Head of the Bulgarian Islamic Academy.
As part of the conference, the participants visited the exhibition “National Feat”.
GSV "Russia - Islamic World"
Photo: fadn.gov.ru