«This is a welcome initiative,» said El Hadj Oumar Gueye, the director of the Islamic Institute in Dakar, in response to the Pope´s call to Catholics to fast on Dec. 14.
Gueye says the papal request is proof that the Catholic Church and its leader John Paul II desire to keep up the good relations between the two religions. The Friday fast will coincide with the end of Ramadan, the Muslim month of fasting.
Another prominent Muslim, Serigne Abibou Tall, a member of the Tidianiya confraternity, also approves of the proposal.
«The Pope´s call must be welcomed with joy by all those who want peace,» he said. «Allah inspired the Pope to make this call.»
He said has asked the imam, the leader of prayer in a mosque, to preach this Friday on the Pope´s intentions and to pray with him and all Christians for the return of peace in the hearts of believers.
