Central Mosque in Koln will be like a Freedom Monument

The foundation of the Central Mosque in Koln, Germany was laid by the Department of Religious Affairs Turkish Islamic Union at a ceremony where Turkish Republic’s State Minister, Faruk Celik participated in.

While the representatives of the Catholic and  the Protestant Churches participated in the ceremony, Chancellor Angela Merkel  sent a greetings message.

In his speech, Faruk Celik raised the notice that the 20th Century left a climate of intolerance behind itself but today, the representatives from all of the religions met here; so, a climate of tolerance was created. He also expressed that  people are now travelling by the same ship, and said; “We can not turn a blind eye to the differences. We do commit mistakes if we try to remove these. The differences are just like patterns on the same carpet. So they need to be preserved.”

Department of Religious Affairs Chairman Ali Bardakoglu also emphasized that this mosque will be like a freedom monument of all religions.